o 156)1 542-71 4-20m-6099 BULLETIN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS NO. 364 ISSUED SIX TIMES A MONTH EXTENSION SERIES NO. 62 OCTOBER 10, 1914 A STUDY OF RURAL SCHOOLS IN TEXAS BY E. V. WHITE AND E. E. DAVIS Depanment of Extension, Division of Public School Improvement The University of Texas Published by THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS Entere as second-class mail matter at the postoffice at Austin, Texas The benefits of education and of useful knowledge, generally diffused through acora- munity, are essential to the preservation of a free government. Sam Houston. Cultivated mind is the guardian genius of democracy It is the only dic- tator that freemen acknowledge and the only security that freemen desire. Mirabeau B. Lamar. D. Of D. JAN 1^6 .915 k CONTENTS. Page. I. Educational Rank of Texas 15 II. Necessity for Compulsory School Attendance in Texas 20 III. Consolidation and Transportation 26 IV. Rural School Administration 36 County Supervision 36 State Apportionment for Country High Schools 40 V. The Rural Church 44 VI. The Rural Schools of Harris County 50 History, Location, and Economic Status 50 Market Facilities, Roads, and Transportation 52 Transportation of Pupils at Public Expense 52 Clubs, Social Meetings, and Athletic Sports 54 Teachers 59 Physical Features of the Public Schools 60 Educational System in Operation 64 Summary of Facts About Harris County Public Schools 67 Causes Contributing to Educational Development 68 Pasadena Public School in Harris County 69 Dairy School No. 46 in Harris County 76 VII. The Rural Schools of Bell County 83 Economic and Industrial Situation 83 Market Facilities 86 Railroads 86 Good Roads 86 Social Conditions 87 Churches 89 Educational Status and Tendencies 90 Instruction 90 Tenure of Teachers 93 School Districts and Consolidation 94 Physical Features of the Schools 96 Local Taxation • 98 Schoolhouse Bonds 98 Governing Boards.... 99 The County Superintendent's Office 100 Summary and Recommendations 102 The Willow Grove School 103 Prairie Dell School 107 4 Contents Page. VIII. The Rural Schools of CoUin County Ill Location, Topography, and Roads Ill Influence of Physical and Economic Features 112 Farm Tenancy 114 Large Districts vs. Small Districts 116 Dixon Consolidated School 119 Lucas School 120 Conclusions and Recommendations •. 122 IX. The Rural Schools of Nacogdoches County 125 Location, Topography, Transportation and Communica- tion 125 County and Community Fairs 125 Martinsville School 126 Social Recreation and Athletic Sports 128 Financial and Physical Features of the Common Schools 131 Recommendations 135 Chireno Public School 135 X. The Rural Schools of Fisher County 139 Economic and Industrial Situation 139 Social and Religious Conditions 140 Educational Status and Tendencies 142 Course of Study 142 Teachers 144 Need for Rural High Schools 145 A Practical Plan for Providing Rural High Schools 146 Schoolhouses 147 Local Taxes 150 Consequences of Effective Supervision 151 County Teachers' Institutes 1153 Libraries 153 County Permanent School Fund 153 Needs of the Country Schools 154 XL Betterment of Rural Life About the Tuleta Rural High School, Bee County, Texas 155 DEPARTMENT OF EXTENSION OFFICERS OF ADMINISTRATION Sidney Edward Mezes, Ph. D., President of the University. F. M. Bralley, Director of the Department of Extension. Sam C. Polk, Secretary to the Director. Division of Coi-i'espondence Instruction. L. W. Payne, Jr., Ph. D., Head of the Division. W. Ethel Barron, Registrar. Division of Public Welfare. Charles B. Austin, M. A., Head of the Division. George S. Wehrwein, B. S., Specialist and Lecturer on Co- operation. W. A. Schoenfeld, B. S., Specialist in Farm and Co-Opera- tive Accounting. Division of Public Discussion. E. D. Shueter, Ph. B., Head of the Division. A. J. Robinson, B. A., Lecturer and Athletic Organizer. Marian Edith Potts, B. A., Package Librarian. Division of Home Welfare. Mary E. Gearing, Head of the Division. Jessie P. Rich, B. S., Lecturer on Domestic Economy. Edith Allen, B. A., Lecturer on Domestic Economy. Division of Public School Improvement. E. V. White, B. S., Head of the Division. Edward E. Davis, B. A., Lecturer. Amanda Stoltzfus, L. L, Lecturer. Division of Public Lectures and Publicity. John A. Lomax, M. A., Head of the Division. Division of Child Welfare. A. Caswell Ellis, Ph. D., Head of the Division. N. L. Hoopingarner, B. A., Assistant. Purpose. Every university should serve not only its resident student body but also the entire community. This is true in a peculiar sense of a state university; supported as it is by the taxes of all the people, it is under business obligation to render back service to each citizen and to the commonwealth. In a general sense a university fulfills this obligation by sending edu- cated young men and women back into their home communities to carry with them the culture of a broader outlook; the skill acquired through professional training as lawyers, teachers, doctors, nurses, home-makers, business men; and especially the inspiration to unselfish service as citizens that is the intangible and priceless asset of university life. Taking the University to the People. This indirect contact with the whole people of the state is, however, not sufficient. The constant aim of the President and Eegents has been to broaden the scope of the University of Texas with the broadening interests of the state, and to bring its benefits within the reach of as many individuals as possible. In 1898 the Summer Schools were opened and have been maintained each summer since for the convenience of students who are unable to attend the long session, especially for the teachers of the Texas schools whose professional work fills the winter months. As a further step toward making the University directly useful to large numbers of people who are unable to attend the classes of either the long, or the summer session, the Depart- ment of Extension was established four years ago. This Depart- ment has developed rapidly, and its work is now carried forward under seven divisions, as fololws: The Division of Public Welfare. It is the purpose of this division to go into the field and investigate the economic and social conditions in the state, with a view of collecting such reliable data as may present a basis for intelligent efforts at improving such conditions. It is hoped that through this Department the citizens of the state may have the advantage of unbiased University experts, who can come to them and advise with them whenever they wish to plan any economic and social movement. The time of one or more persons will be devoted to the various problems of 8 Bulletin of the University of Texas rural economy, sanitation, social life, finance, marketing, and kin- dred subjects. The Division of Public Discussion. This division has for its purpose the encouragement and intelligent direction of public discussion and debate, both in schools and out of them. Bulle- tins have been issued giving advice regarding the organization of debating clubs, and furnishing lists of references for reading and preparation for debate on a number of topics. Loan libraries on important subjects, such as prohibition, woman suffrage, in- itiative and referendum, prison reform, compulsory education, the commission form of city government, municipal ownership of public utilities, and the tariff and free raw material, have been prepared and are being loaned to such clubs and individuals as request them. The University Intersch clastic League has been successfully organized, and it is the hope of this division to assist in developing the school as a social center through which the com- munity may become better informed. County organizations be- longing to the League hold annually county contests in debating, declamation, and athletics. Every school in Texas should be in- terested in this work, and a League should be organized in each county. Upon request the Constitution of the League, together with bulletins and other information, will be mailed. The Division of Home Welfare. The division deals specifically with all problems relating to the home, and exists primarily for the benefit of the home-maker and with a view of placing the home on the same intelligent and prosperous basis which characterizes other progressive institutions. Lecturers and demonstrators will attend fairs, county educational rallies, and make a limited num- ber of engagements through the medium of women's organizations, to give specific instruction on subjects of vital interest to the home. Bulletins will be issued frequently on matters pertaining to the home and may be had on application to the Department. Ques- tions will gladly be answered at any time on matters pertaining to the welfare of the home. Further information may be obtained by writing to the division. The Division of Public School Improvement. This division has in charge the various educational exhibits sent out by the Uni- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 9 versity to the fairs and other large gatherings, to call to the atten- tion of the people certain needs of Texas and to point out the most intelligent methods of m.eeting these needs. These exhibits cover such vital subjects as school buildings and school hygiene, plays and playgrounds, use of schools as social centers, medical inspection of schools and care of the feeble-minded. Information on miscel- laneous subjects is furnished through the co-operation of men in the faculty who have expert knowledge in their various fields. Eeady-made lectures, accompanied by slides, are sent out to respon- sible people who are attempting local improvement. Short, prac- tical bulletins have been prepared on many such timely subjects as Wholesome Cooking under Rural Conditions, Beautification of Home and School Grounds. Pamphlets have also been issued on One and Two-Eoom Rural School Buildings, Three and Four- Room Rural School Buildings, Remodeled Rural School Build- ings. These contain full detailed drawings and detailed archi- tect's specifications. As its title indicates, the activities of this division are diversified. The aim of the division is to be useful in the homes and in the schools of the state, and to this end correspondence with communities that desire its co-operation is invited. The Division of Public Lectures. In the Division of Public Lectures the University undertakes to provide competent, trained, and impartial speakers, chiefly from among its faculty, to present to the people the great questions of the day, and interesting phases of literature, science, and art. It is by no means the purpose of these lectures to be merely amusing; the attempt is made to present in a popular and attractive form a definite amount of reliable instruction. A special bulletin setting forth the available lectures has been prepared and will be sent upon application. The Division of Child Welfare. The Division of Child Welfare investigates local conditions affecting children, and assists in plans for bettering the conditions affecting childhood. The hygienic and sanitary conditions of schools have been given much study, and through bulletins, letters, and lectures help is given to school boards in planning new schoolhouses and in remodeling old ones to make them more hygienic. The feeble-minded and delinquents 10 Bulletin of the University of Texas have been studied and assistance given in drafting laws to care bet- ter for them. Numerous other studies will be taken up as rapidly as funds are made available. A ps3Thological clinic will next year be established at the University to which abnormal, or atypical, children may be brought for diagnosis. At present the division gives free advice by mail on any matter pertaining to child welfare. The Division of Correspondence Instruction. Teaching by cor- spondence has long since passed the experimental stage. While the University recommends resident work when residence is pos- sible, believing that the experience of meeting and mixing with fellow students and the consequent training in real democracy as well as the personal contact with and inspiration from the teachers, is invaluable, yet the authorities of the University also realize that correspondence study offers substantial advantages. In correspond- ence instruction the teaching is entirely individual; each student, no matter how diffident or how lacking in aggressiveness, comes into individual relation with the instructor in a way impossible in the crowded classroom. He recites the whole of every lesson with a consequent advantage to himself that is obvious. Full op- portunity is given to discuss all difficulties in writing, and this written discussion in itself affords valuable training. Further, a correspondence student is not hampered by the usual time regu- lations; he may take up a study at his convenience without await- ing the fixed date of a college term, and he may push the work to completion as rapidly as he is able to master it. Moreover, cor- respondence work develops in a marked degree initiative, self- reliance, accuracy, and above all, perseverance. A STUDY OF RURAL SCHOOLS IN TEXAS INTRODUCTION The Universit}' of Texas, as the head of the public school sys- tem of the state, has from the beginning manifested a commend- able interest in the improvement of the common public schools, rural and urban, and in promoting a co-operative spirit among all reputable educational institutions in Texas, state, denominational, and private. This bulletin is the result of a study or a survey made by Messrs. E. V. White and E. E. Davis of the Division of Public School Improvement of the Department of Extension of the Uni- versity. The study or survey included the rural public schools of Harris, JSTacogdoches, Bell, Collin, and Fisher counties, and a few additional observations on the educational conditions and needs of Texas. It was made for the purpose of assembling reliable information as to the exact educational status in five typical coun- ties of the state, knowing that such information would be helpful in any effort to provide better schools throughout the state by county superintendents of schools, boards of school trustees, teach- ers, and other citizens who are interested in good schools for the children of Texas. The methods adopted by Messrs. White and Davis in making the study or survey were broad and comprehensive; and they have sought to present in composite form the educational situation, in- cluding all of its fundamental phases, with the view to eliminating defects, to strengthening the weak places, and to contributing in a constructive way to better public sentiment and better public schools. In their work they went to original sources for informa- tion and observation, — to the county school superintendents, to the boards of school trustees, to the teachers, to the schools, to the homes of representative citizens, to the records of the commission- ers' courts, to the officers and some of the leading members of the social, industrial, and religious organizations of the counties, and obtained the information at first hand. Messrs. Wliite and Davis are recognized by competent authorities as being admirably fitted or equipped for making studies or sur- veys of this kind. It is therefore believed that this study or survey contains information of interest and value to the people of Texas, and that the bulletin will be read by thousands of citizens, and the information contained therein will be used effectively in pro- moting educational progress in Texas. F. M. Brallet, Director. A STUDY OF RURAL SCHOOLS IN TEXAS I. EDUCATIONAL RANK OF TEXAS The education of all tlie children of ail the people is now gener- ally conceded to be one of the most important functions of the state. A perfect democracy would provide for the education of every citizen. It does not follow, however, that all citizens must have the same kind of education; but each person should receive- that training which will contribute most to his own happiness and which will make him a useful factor in human society. Perhaps the best way to judge the degree of our educational efficiency is by comparison. The inexcusably low rank of Texas- is neither in keeping with our state pride nor commensurate with our material greatness. According to the most recent statistics available, the following is a summary of the educational rank of Texas among the several states of the Union : Item. Rank. Per cent of children enrolled in school 4& Value of school property per child 36 Annual expenditure per cliild 39 Per cent of average daily attendance per child 33 Average days of attendance per child 42 Length of public school term 39 Amount expended for schools per $100 of wealth 18 Daily cost per child in school attendance 39 Per cent of pupils in high school 32 Average annual salary of teachers 30 Per cent of illiteracy among persons ten years of age or over ... 35 The facts presented in the ensuing pages have for their object the attainment of better educational advantages for the boys and girls of our state, special attention being given to better country schools. Incidentally, it is hoped that this bulletin will contribute its share towards quickening a public conscience that will raise our state from its present low educational rank. Criticism is most valuable when it points the way to constructive improvement. This 16 Bulletin of the University of Texas object has been constantly kept in mind. Before discussing the concrete data dealing with the school systems that obtain in the few counties studied, attention is directed to certain definite edu- cational movements that are at this time of state-wide concern. Financial Support of Public Schools in Texas. The permanent school fund consisting of lands, land notes, and bonds, amounts to $71,876,195.20. Texas enjo3's the distinction of having the largest permanent public school fund of all the statefc in the Union, but in general educational rank stand's tenth from the bottom of the list of all the states. The income from the permanent school fund is entirely too small to meet the edu- cational needs of the 1,0^:8,570 school children of tlie state unless supplemented from other sources. During the pioneer days of Texas this magnificent school fund was a great boon to education, but with the enormous growth in the scholastic population and the general raising of educational standards in recent years, it has ceased to yield adequate financial support, and in some instances is actually retarding educational progress. There are many in- different school communities that will never give any substantial local support to the cause of education in a financial way as long as they are so genially contented with the deceptive belief that Texas has the greatest public school system in the world and that the state funds are amply sufficient to make it all it needs to be. This meager annual apportionment gratuitously given by the state often encourages listless, apathetic communities not to do their duty by themselves in the way of local taxation for school purposes. T]]e time has come when the available state school fund, or at least a part of it, should be apportioned on some other basis than that of scholastic population. It is interesting to note that most of the states having the high- est general educational rank are the ones where the greatest per cent of the public school revenue is derived from local taxes. In Massachusetts, 96.8 per cent of the available school fund is raised by local taxation; in New York, 87 per cent; in Connecticut, 80.6 per cent; in Texas, only 38.9 per cent. In point of average annual expenditure per child for public education, Texas is outranked by thirty-eight states; thirty-.^ix A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 17 states have more invested per child in school property than Texas, ■and thirty pay a better average salary to their teachers. The aver- age annual amount expended for the education of each child (five to eighteen years of age) in Texas in 1910 was $7; in Oklahoma, $13; in Colorado, $24; in Massachusetts, $25; in Washington, $32. In 1910, Texas had an average of $18 per child invested in school buildings, grounds, and equipment. During the same year Cali- fornia had $89; New York, $111; Massachusetts, $115; and thirty- three other states had more than Texas. The average salary for teachers in Texas in 1910 was $384; in New York, $813; in Ari- zona, $817; in California, $918; while twenty-seven other states paid more for such services than Texas. Texas stands fourth in population and fifth in wealth among the states, but the people have been reluctant to contribute of their means to the cause of education. In 1910, out of each $100 of wealth in Texas, the pittance of thirty-three cents was appro- priated to the public schools. The young neighbor state of Okla- homa gave more than double this amount, and fifteen other states did better than Texas. Yet in the face of all this poor showing, Texas is making some progress. In 1913, the amount raised by local taxation was 36.5 per cent more than for the year 1910; while during the same time the per capita expenditure on the scholastic population has increased 14.3 per cent; and the average annual teacher's salary has grown from $394.23 to $415.27, which is a gain of 5.3 per cent. While teachers' salaries have increased somewhat during recent years, yet it is quite probable, when the increased cost of living is considered, that teachers are not as well paid today as they were ten years ago. In 1911, the United States Bureau of Labor found that wholesale prices were 44.1 per cent higher than they were in 1897. With this statement as a basis of comparison, it is evident, then, that a salary of $693.73 in 1907 had as great a purchasing power as a salary of $1000 in 1911. The inferiority of the Texas public schools is due to the ineffi- ciency of the teachers more than to any other single cause. On an average, Texas teachers continue in the profession less than four years. They find more lucrative employment elsewhere, and new, inexperienced teachers take the places left vacant in the schoolroom. .This is extremely disadvantageous to the public 18 Bulletin of the University of 'Texas schools, but we cannot expect any change for the better until sal- aries are made sufficiently attractive to induce people to prepare themselves and enter the profession as a life work. Teaching in Texas is now not a profession; it is merely temporary employment in the majority of cases. Though most of the wealth of Texas consists of lands and live stock located in the country, it is the country schools that are suffering most for want of proper financial support. This is evi- dent when a comparison of the finances of the rural schools is made Avith the finances of the town and city schools. In 1913 there were in Texas 8496 rural school districts and 590 independ- ent school districts.* For the school year 1912-13, there were 3084, or 36 per cent, of the common school districts that levied no local school maintenance tax 'at all; while only 26, or 2.7 per cent, of the independent districts did not levy a local tax. There were 642,726 children in the country schools, and 374,407 children in the schools of the towns and cities. For the education of the 642,726 children in the rural districts, $1,657,595.58, or $2.58 per capita, was raised by local taxation ; while for the 347,407 children in the town and city communities, $3,551,108.14, or $9.48 per capita, was raised by local taxation. In 1911-12, there was $9,307,- 653 M'orth of schol property, or $14.74 per scholastic, in the rural schools; for the same year there was $21,170,656 worth of school property in the towns and cities of Texas, which was $59.07 per capita scholastic, or 232 per cent per child more than was reported for the country places. Texas is almost a half century behind the leading states in the financial support of her schools, and the public mind will have to be thoroughly revolutionized in this regard before a respectable educational showing can ever be made. It lies within the power of the Thirty-fourth Legislature to initiate a remedy which, when acted upon, will relieve the present strained condition in many of the most progressive school districts. A constitutional amend- ment should be submitted which will remove the maximum local school tax limit of 50 cents per $100 property valuation in com- *For convenience in this discussion all common school districts and all independent districts of fewer than one hundred and fifty scholastics shall be regarded as rural, and all independent districts of more than one hundred and fifty scholastics as urban. .■i study of Rural Schools in Texas 19 mon school and independent school districts and permit also the levy of a county tax not exceeding 20 cents on the $100 property valuation where authorized by a majority of the property tax- paying voters. For several years many districts have sought every possible means to increase their school revenues, and justice de- mands that constitutional inhibitions shall no longer obstruct the way to better schools. The public schools of Texas have also suffered in their financial support because of a failure to levy as great a state tax as the law requires. The present constitutional and statutory limit of such tax is 20 cents on the $100 valuation of property. A law was enacted by the Thirtieth Legislature requiring the state tax board to determine the rate to be levied from year to year, with the provision that the minimum rate shall be such as will produce $4 per capita for all pupils of the scholastic age. During the seven years that this law has been in operation the failure to com- ply with its requirements has cost the available school fund thousands of dollars. 20 Bulletin of the University of Texas II. NECESSITY FOR COMPULSORY SCHOOL ATTEND- ANCE IN TEXAS. In the United States compulsory school attendance had its be- ginning in Massachusetts more than a century ago. At the close of the nineteenth century only twelve states were, without such laws. The map on the opposite page shows that in 1910 every state in the Union except six liad enacted some form of law for compelling school attendance. So universal has become the idea of the compleie justice of com- pulsory education as a function and duty of the .-tate that tlie necessity for the advocacy of the principle among intelligent people is painfully embarrassing. Only the absence of a legal recognition of the principle in a great commonwealth can justify an enumera- tion of facts which would otherwise appear unnecessary, or even ridiculous. Let the facts speak for themselves; and let the fair- minded and thoughtful citizen weigh them without prejudice in the light of modern progress. The scholastic age in Texas in 1911-12 included all children from seven to seventeen years of age. Scholastic census rolls showed an enumeration of 791,491: white children. During this year the public schools enrolled 675,718, and it is estimated that private schools enrolled 35,000 scholastics, leaving a total of 90,776 children of scholastic age who did not attend school a single day during the year. Again, there was an average daily attendance in the public schools of 439,099 white children, and an average daily absence of 352,-395. It is indeed difficult for the average mind to comprehend how many human souls are included in this vast army of absentee pupils from the schools. Placed twelve feet apart, these white pupils absent every day from the public schools in Texas would form a line extending across the state from El Paso to Texarkana, a distance of over eight hundred miles ! Think of the vast economic loss to the state and to individual families because of irregular attendance upon the schools. Pre- suming that the schools are perfect and that the work of every child while in school represents his best, the absentee pupils destroy at least 45.8 per cent of the possible efficiency of the school. The most accurate statistics available estimate the value in dollars and A Study of Rural Schools fn Texas 21 22 Bulletin of the University of Texas cents of a child's work in school at $10 per day. Accordingly, Texas is losing in potential earning capacity at the rate of $3,523,- 950 daily during the entire school session because of poor attend- ance. In a school year of 130 days, the average length of the school term, the economic waste from this source alone reaches the astounding and inconiprehensible sum of $458,114,500. A fire or flood which causes the loss of a few million dollars is a subject of much interest. The loss occasioned by a mismanaged peni- tentiary system is considered a matter of grave public concern. How insignificant are these when compared to the loss from non- attendance upon the schools ! The same person who marvels at the magnitude of material misfortunes fails to observe that there is a greater misfortune, occasioned by the fact that his neighbor's, possibly his own, children are absent from the schools. And yet, financial reward is the lowest consideration which education offers. Under conditions that do not protect the child against the passion of commercialism- and the whims of vice and ignorance, it is not surprising that Texas ranks forty-sixth among the states, in per cent of school population (five to eighteen years) enrolled in public and private schools. Nor. is it to be wondered at that only forty per cent of the children in the country districts ever reach the fifth grade, while fewer than five per cent reach the high school grades. It may be argued that the production of cotton presents a peculiar economic situation which renders good attendance upon the schools impracticable; but the answer must be, in all seriousness and candor, that any industry which takes the children from the schools imposes a cost too high to be profit- able. Poor school attendance is doubtless responsible to a large extent for the fact that Texas ranks thirty-fifth in per cent of illiterate population ten years of age and over, as shown by the accompany- ing table. It cannot be denied that the negro population is partly responsible for this high rate of illiteracy; but it is nevertheless true that the greater responsibility lies elsewhere. United States Commissioner Claxton says upon this point: "The higher rate of rural illiteracy in the southern states cannot be laid to the negro population, because for the entire group of southern states the rate of illiteracy among the rural whites is three times the rate among the urban whites, and the rate among rural whites is greater A Studij of Rural Schools in Texas 33 24 Bulletin of the University of Texas in every individual southern state than among urban whites. The rate of illiteracy among rural negroes in the same states, while nearly seven times the rate for the rural whites, is only one and one-half times the rate of illiteracy among urban negroes." A few apparently honest people have been so far misguided as to oppose any form of compulsory school attendance because of their disbelief in the education of the negro. They would place a bridle of restraint and negligence upon the white children, who con- stitute four-fifths of the scholastic population, on account of their antipathy for the negroes, who constitute only one-fifth of the scholastic population. Even if all money spent for the education of the negro were a wasted erpenditure, opposition for the reason offered would be untenable and unjustifiable. Furthermore, there is no reason why money spent for the education of the negro should not be a profitable investment if the school is made to set the negro's feet on the path to industrial efficiency. The right of the parent over the child is not one of unrestrained authority. Long ago the state denied to the parent the right of taking the life of his child, visiting such inhumanity with the stigma and punishment accorded the vilest of murderers. It rightfully forbids the mutilation of the child's body or the inflic- tion of unreasonable punishment. Is it not inconsistent, from a moral point of view, to prohibit a parent from cutting off the arm of his child, and permit him at the same time to suppress the child's mental development, or to limit its sphere of useful- ness? Is the body more sacred than the mind? It is the inalien- able right of every child to obtain at the joint expense of the parent and the state a training that will prepare him to make an honest living and to contribute a service of usefulness to society; and the strong arm of the state should protect innocent childhood against the olstinancy, ignorance, or incapacity of the parent by the enactment of a reasonable and effective compulsory school at- tendance law. Details of the kind of law most suitable need not be discussed here since the laws of more than forty states furnish ample litera- ture on the subject. And no advice with respect thereto will be offered except a statement of the general principle that a law with few provisions well enforced is far better than one of many pro- A Study of Rural Scliools in Texas 25 visions not enforced. This literature, together with that available from the office of the United States Commissioner of Education^ should he more than enough to convince the Thirty-fourth Legis- lature of Texas of the pressing necessity for a compulsory educa- tion law. Here is a large oppo'iunity for the Legislature to do itself honor. 2€ Bulletin of the University of Texas III. CONSOLIDATION AND TRANSPORTATION. Meaning of Consolidation. By a consolidated school is meant a school of large numbers, largf area, and large resources. Roughly speaking, it may be con- sidered a school of 150 pupils or more, a faculty of at least four teachers, a district with an area not less than twenty-five square miles, and an assessed property valuation of $500,000 or more. While these estimates may vary with local conditions, the mainte- nance of a good consolidated school is based fundamentally on large units of three essential factors — pupils, area, wealth. Extent of Consolidation in the United States. The consolidated school is no longer an experiment. Every school authority in the world recognizes that the maintenance of ^cient country schools requires the abandonment of the small, primitive schools and the substitution therefor of fewer schools at convenient and accessible points. The principle has become an integral part of the rural school system of not less than forty states. More than 1500 consolidations have been affected during the past year. These schools, now numbering approximately 9500 partially consolidated and completely consolidated schools, have found greatest favor in Louisiana, Indiana, Massachusetts, Min- nesota, Ohio, and North Dakota. The significant fact that there is not on record one single case of retrogression where consolida- tion has been given a fair trial presents an argument that its opponents cannot answer. Of indisputable benefit in the states where it has been tried, eould Texas expect a similar advantage from consolidation? The abundant literature on the subject, to which practically every bureau of education in the country has contributed, renders un- necessary an exhaustive discussion here. Considering local con- ditions, the question may be stated: Will Texas be justified in participating on a larger scale in this nation-wide movement for tibe betterment of rural environment? A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 27 Wkah ^ngoUAnliorL ^l^kdits i'Aa IDIimI ^ S(^xoo\ Proa ^vdss mid'iM sckb k Ik Mid Skk Sk sj^ifiVanl fd M hin {? no\ on tvixjri In all {k woM a $kjh mi Of ilidonmnl wkn msollkl'm has hm ^im a fdr kid fnsinb an ar^mmt lluf Wia oppomnh ofcon^Malm (mno\ di\$iui^tr. 88 Bulletin of the Universiti/ of Texas Advantages of Consolidated Schools. A most important consideration in the maintenance of a good school is the employment of trained teachers. Of the 8500 coun- try schools in Texas, approximately 6000 are one-teacher schools. These are generally too impoverished to employ teachers whose qualifications are recognized in the larger schools. As a result the country schools have become a kind of pedagogical laboratory for the annual initiation of nearly five thousand inexperienced teachers. Let it also be remembered that nine-tenths of the teach- ers who hold second grade certificates have their professional life confined to the country schools. Investigation further proves that less than one per cent of the teachers have had technical training in agriculture. The maintenance of consolidated schools would mean larger taxable areas with the consequent result of funds available for the employment of experienced teachers or teachers whose training in the Normal Schools would offset, in a large measure, the inexperience now so commonly found in the one-room country schools. Another result of the larger schools is the distribution of the work of the several grades so as to allow longer recitation periods. An examination of the daily program of the average one-teacher school shows from twenty-five to forty recitations per day with from five to twelve minutes devoted to each recitation. The con- dition is ridiculous. By no possibility could efficient work be done by even the best of teachers with such a handicap. The consoli- dation of one-teacher schools would distribute the work of the pupils so as to obviate this difficulty. A school of three teachers could do more teaching and infinitely better teaching than could be done for the same pupils in five, or even six, one-teacher schools. The introduction of Industrial education in the country schools to any considerable extent is hopelessly impossible under the pres- ent conditions. Schools employing several teachers would have the resources with which to provide laboratories; and at least one teacher, with special training, could direct all or a greater part of the industrial work. Since 95 per cent of all the pupils in the country schools of Texas do not even reach the high school, voca- tional training should be an integral part of the curriculum in the lower grades. The large field of information relative to agri- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 39 culture and to home economics cannot find its way to the farms of the country except through the avenue of the public school. The readjustment of the school to enable it to do its share in developing an efficient farm life will have far-reaching results, and it is feasible only through consolidation. Let it be borne in mind also that the provision of high schools for country children depends entirely on the consolidation of small schools. Four hundred and fifty thousand white children now in this state cannot attend high schools without leaving the farm. It is no wonder that only 5 per cent of them ever enter the high school when the incentive for further advancement sufEers such miserable limitations. And this lamentable condition will con- tinue until the high school is brought within an accessible distance of the child's home. Eeliable records of consolidated schools in other states show that now twice as many pupils finish the eighth grade as in the same districts before consolidation. Aside from the discrimination involved, it is more economical to maintain high schools that would be accessible to all the children, through the consolidated plan, than to carry 5 per cent of them away from their homes to boarding schools. The effect of consolidation upon attendance, tardiness, and dis- cipline shows remarkably encouraging results. The bleak, dismal, lonely atmosphere of the one-teacher school is transformed into one of enthusiasm and inspiration. Statistics show that the average daily attendance after districts have been consolidated is twenty- seven per cent higher than in the same districts before consoli- dation. In addition to these advantages there is no way to esti- mate the unlimited possibilities for good to the community from a larger social, religious, and economic organization. Transportation a Complement of Consolidation. A necessary complement of consolidation is the transportation of pupils at public expense. Especially is this true where children reside at distances of three miles or more from the schoolhouse. Two plans prevail for providing transportation: first, payment of a monthly sum to pupils wild furnish private vehicles; second, the purchase of a wagon by the school district. Where the number of pupils to be transported justifies it, the latter plan has been 30 Bulletin of the University of Texas found far more satisfactory. When the wagon is driven by a com- petent person, pupils may be conveyed for five or six miles with- out the physical exposure or the immoral influences incident to walking short distances. In fact, bad roads and severe climate may be additional incentives for transportation. To say the least, they retard attendance even in the small school. It is true that transportation increases the expenses of the school; but the money ?avod in a lower cost of instruction in the larger schools will partly cover this additional outlay. If the consolidated school and the transportation of pupils furnish the only means of educating the children adequately, the "economy" that omits or neglects them is calamitous. Concrete Examples in Texas Schools. The high cost and the poor results of maintaining small one- teacher schools is exemplified in the table on the opposite page. And at the same time the efficiency of the larger schools is alsa to be observed. The table is a comparison of statistics between the average for several large country schools and that for several small country schools in each of three separate counties for the scholastic year 1913-14. For its compilation, only average schools conducted under normal conditions were chosen. In every instance the length of the school term for the larger schools is greater than that for the smaller ones in the same county, being ten days longer in Milam county, twenty-five days longer in Bell county, and thirty days longer in Van Zandt county. Notwithstanding the longer terms, the per cent of average daily attendance to- enrollment is higher for the larger schools than for the smaller ones in the same county, being 10.7 per cent higher in Milam county, 6.1 per cent higher in Bell county, and 14.7 per cent higher in Van Zandt county. It will also be observed that the average daily cost per pupil in attendance is lower for the larger schools than for the smaller ones in the same county, being 3 mills lower in Milam county, 4.1 cents lower in Bell county, and 3.9 cents lower in Van Zandt county. These facts are strong evidence of the general excellence of con- solidated schools in three typical counties in Texas. But there was actually accomplished more than these figures indicate. High .4 Study of Bural Schools in Texas 31 Large Schools vs. Small Sch ools Per cent of Average daily Attendance to Enrollment Length of School Terra In Days Daily C»st per Pipit in Cents Milam County Average for Six Three-Teacher Schools 63.9 53.2 135 125 13.2 13.5 Average for Seven One-Teacher Schools Bell County Average for Four Three-Teacher Schools 69.9 63.8 112 87 11.1 15.2 Average for Four One-Teacher Schools Van Zandt County Average for Three Four-Teacher Schools 64.5 49.8 125 95 11.7 15.6 Average for Eight One-Teacher Schools . Small Schools mean high cost, short terms, and low attendance. Large Schools mean moderate cost, long terms, and high attendance. Which is the Better Investment? 32 Bulletin of the University of Texas aehool opportiinities, longer recitation periods, and better teachers were provided in all the larger schools. Progress of Consolidation and Transportation in Texas. Until an investigation was recently instituted by the Department of Extension of the University, no accurate data as to the extent of consolidation and transportation in Texas were available. A qu^tionnaire requesting detailed information was sent to county superintendents and ex-oflBcio county superintendents, and 123 re- sponses were received. Considering the great number of populous eoTinties represented in the 123 answers, it is estimated that the data cover about 70 per cent of the country schools of the state. The information thus gathered covers a period of four years, beginning September 1, 1910; and concerns the consolidation of two or more schools in the same district by local trustees, and the consolidation of two or more districts by commissioners' courts and county boards of education. These 123 counties have efEected 1-18 consolidations, which resulted in the abandonment of 155 schools. More than four-fifths of this work was confined to twenty-three counties, which made 112 consolidations that resulted in the aban- donment of 122 schools. The counties taking the lead are Bastrop, Bell, Bexar, Brazos, Comanche, Coryell, Eastland, Ellis, Falls, Fannin, Gillespie, Harris, Hunt, Jack, Jones, Johnson, Medina, Milam, McLennan, Parmer, Shelby, Taylor, Williamson. It is noteworthy that a large number of the consolidations were made by county boards of education under the provisions of the Eural High School Law. In some instances a consolidation was effected primarily for high school purposes, and while there is a complete union of districts, the old schools continue either as primary or as intermediate schools. Pacts adduced show that consolidation is not needed in many of the counties of West Texas because the present districts are large enough. But the possibilities for further work are indicated by the fact that the 123 counties report 337 districts with an area of less than nine square miles each. Several counties have forty or more of such districts. One county has 115 districts which irerage less than seven square miles apiece. The utter impossi- bility of eflficient high schools is shown by the information that A Study of Rural Schools hi Texas 33 Free Iransportation of Pupils in Country Schools NAME OF COUNTY No. of Districts No. of Pupils No. of Wagoos Monthly Cost per Wagon $37.50 Brazoria. 1 65 6 Cameron 1 45 2 $25.00 Galveston 1 20 1 $40.00 Hansford 1 No in- formation Harris 5 196 6 $31.00 Jasper 1 70 2 $37.50 Motley 1 64 2 $40.00 Parmer 3 22 3 $20.00 Travis 1 20 No information THE COUNTRY SCHOOLS OF TEXAS Should be transporting not less than 75,000 High School Pupils. 34 Bulletin of the University of Texas all the 123 counties together report only 137 instances of a count ly school that employs as many as four teachers. The following are given as the principal obstacles to consolidation: Local prejudice, community feuds, bad roads, cost of transportation, location of the schoolhouse, lack of information, desire of each man for a school- house at its door, opposition of big land owners, sparsely settled eommimities, bonded school districts, obstinacy of the commission- ers' court, lack of power given to the county board. Facts about transportation at public expense, given in detail on the opposite page, need no explanation. These counties are to be congratulated upon having taken the initiative in this movement. Let it be said unreservedly that the transportation of pupils at the expense of school districts must become a fundamental part of our public school system. Needed Legislation fur Consolidated ScJiools. If the facts thus arrayed demonstrate the expediency of consoli- dation, then consolidation should be made a matter of immediate state concern. It can be liastened by the enactment of a small amount of coiistructive legislation along proper lines. Those who liavc had practical field experience know the difficulty of bringing about changes. People will agree to the wisdom of consolidation as an abstract proposition; but they are slow to act in putting it to the actual test, and show a sentimental regret at parting com- pany with the little schoolhouse near them. All that is needed is an incentive that stirs them to action. Minnesota, Missouri, Iowa, and New Jersey have partially solved the problem by giving state aid upon certain conditions. For example, Iowa gives $250 for equipment and $200 annually for maintenance to each consolidated school of two rooms teaching agriculture and home economics, or other vocational subjects approved by the state superintendent; to schools of three rooms, $350 and $500, respectively; to schools of four rooms, $500 and $500, respectively. The enactment of a law giving state aid to the consolidation of small school districts in Texas ivould unquestionahly accomplish tangible results without delay. Difficulties are often met in consolidating districts when there are outstanding bonds against one or more of the districts involved. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 35 ( The will of the people in effecting a consolidation is often thwarted to satifef}- a technical demand of the laAv. The laiu should he amended so as to permit the county hoard of education to consoli- date districts, even though some of the districts have outstanding honds. In most cases it would doubtless be advisable for the con- solidated district to assume by an election the bonded indebtedness previous^ incurred by any individual district, the title for such property being then vested in the newly consolidated district. It is the opinion of the attorney general that the legislature could delegate to the county board the right of making consolidations under these conditions. Future of the Consolidated School. The tendency of the times in the country generally, and in Texas as well, is unmistakably toward consolidation. Already has been sounded the death-knell of the small one-teacher and two-teacher schools. They have served nobly in the vanguard of our civili- zation. Now they must go. They no longer serve the needs of the day. We are not going to perpetuate an institution ancient, outworn, outgrowm, sadly deficient, when we have at hand a mod- ern one of proved efficiency. The extent of consolidation in the future is prophesied by Mr. Geo. W. Knorr, an eminent authority on the subject, as follows: "Ultimately about 250,000 small rural schools in the open coun- try Avill yield to the pressure of new social and economic condi- tions and go into consolidation in groups of six to ten, forming about 25,000 country life institutions known as consolidated schools or country life schools. The remaining 80,000 district schools will continue as such in all places where topographical and geo- graphical conditions will not permit consolidation and conveyance of pupils, but they will be vitalized and benefited by the spirit of the consolidated schools from which will come the majority of their teachers." 36 Bulletin of the University of Texas IV. RURAL SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION. Successful country schools are impossible without efficient ad- uiinistration. For many reasons tlie logical unit for such admin- istration in Texas is the county. The perfection of our present system of rural Rchool organization is conditioned upon two im- portant and overshadowing factors : first, the provision of com- petent supervision in all tlie counties; second, a proper recognition of the functions of tlie county board of education. COUXTY SUPEIIVISTOX. Extension of Supervision to All Counties. It is deplorable tliat more than half the counties of the state have no supervision save that given l)etween the sessions of the county court or commissioners' court, or between various business transactions, by the county judge, who is not supposed to know any more about advising teachers than about directing the en- gineers in the construction of the Panama Canal. Not long ago a county judge who has filled the office for many years with dis- tinguished ability remarked that he had as little as j^ossible to do with the State Department of Education at Austin. This county judge and ex-officio superintendent deserves to be commended for his frankness. Although there are perhaps in the Avhole state half a dozen county judges who are successful administrators of edu- cational affairs, the attitiule of the one just mentioned represents the prevalent distaste which the average county judge has for mat- ters relating to school administration. Children residing in the less populous counties are entitled to as good schools as other children, and this condition is not possible witiiout supervision. The law should be amended so that every county hdving a scholastic popnlation of 2000 ivoulcl he required to have a county super iniendeut; and counties having a scholastic population of fewer than 2000 should be grouped so that from' two to three counties would he required jointly to employ a county superintendent. A Study of Rural ScJiools in Texas 37 Wrong Method of Choosing the County Superintendent. The present method of choosing the county superintendent at regular primary elections is a matter that deserves serious criti- cism. It not only prescribes a political qualification for an edu- cational office; it also involves what should bo an educational posi- tion of dignity in all the petty political scrambles that operate in the election of political offices in the county, district, and state. To secure the nomination a candidate is often required to nego- tiate with contending factions which invite opportunity for the trading and manipulation of votes. Frequently his church affil- iation, or degree of poverty, or physical disability, or readiness to shake hands and pass insincere compliments, or other condition or knack entirely foreign to professional fitness, is allowed to determine the result of the campaign. When the nominations are made, tliere may be a Democratic candidate, a Republican can- didate, and a Socialist candidate, not one of wliom has any qualifications for the office of county superintendent except tliat he is his party's nominee. After the election the successful candidate, grateful to his constituents and remembering the next approaching campaign, consumes much time in laying plans that will insure his re-election. In the meanwhile the schools are being neglected, and the most important office in the county has become the prey of demagoguery, the cost of which is defrayed by the county's innocent, unsuspecting, and helpless children. Fortu- nately these conditions do not obtain in the majority of the coun- ties, but they do exist, and the mere possibility of tlieir existence constitutes the greatest stigma upon the present school system of Texas. Again, the method of election makes uncertain the tenure of office, regardless of tlie increased efficiency incident to length of service. It is a matter of common knowledge that many of the best qualified and most ambitious county superintendents have within the past five years voluntarily resigned the office at the first favorable opportunity because they knew full well that no amount of efficient service would guarantee permanency of posi- tion. An examination of the records extending to the close of the present term shows that long tenure is confined to a few counties. Of the 120 county superintendents now in office, 55 liave served 38 Bulletin of Hie University of Texas only two years or less. In 96 counties the average tenure has been only 2.3 years. The average for all the counties is -i.15 years. Conditions in past years were no better than now. That is to say, our present system of choice by political election gives the average county superintendent a season of service that corresponds with the populistic doctrine of two terms in office and no more. In fact, the two-term practice is so well established in some sections that superintendents do not dare to offer for a third time. The rule worke both ways in that an election is a guarantee, even to the mo:-t incompetent, of the customary Democratic courtesy of four years in office. It is well known that the first two years are largely consumed in learning the details in the office and in becoming acquainted with the people, teachers, and pupils of the various districts, leaving only the last two years or less for unhampered service. The exercise of recognized business economy in the expenditure of the children's money demands the inauguration of a system whereby the efficient county superintendent may be retained so long as his services are the best available^ and whereby the incom- petent county superintendent cannot be imposed upon the children nwrely to comply with an established political tenure of four years. Correct Method of Choosing the County Superintendent. The only correct solution of this problem lies in the selection of the county superintendent In' a board, allowing the board to seek beyond the borders of the county if a more competent person is elsewhere available. Xo well informed citizen would now con- tend that the teacher of any school or the superintendent of a city school should be elected by the people at the regular primary elec- tion from the limited material available in the district or county; nor would anyone argue that the heads and faculty members of state educational institutions should be thus elected. If the prin- ciple is right that the 20,000 teachers now filling the various educational positions in Texas should be chosen by boards, why should not the same method apply with equal force to the selection of county superintendents ? Each member of a board of five would feel the weight of a large personal responsibility in the selection of a county superintendent; but when this duty is delegated to five A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 39 or six thousand voters, the sense of personal responsibility is so diluted that few persons feel it seriously. In the Eighteenth Bi- ennial Report of the State Department of Education, former State Superintendent F. M. Bralley forcefully summarizes the advan- tages of electing county superintendents by county boards of edu- cation in these words: "This method would have a tendency (1) to take the office of county superintendent out of the whirlpool of county politics ; (2) to make it unnecessary' for the county superintendent to spend three or four months every two years in making a political cam- paign for an educational position; (3) to enable the countv super- intendent to concentrate his time and his efforts in behalf of edu- cational improvement and service; (-1) to permit the choosing of a county superintendent on the basis of qualifications and ability to render service; (5) to eliminate the present two-term custom which obtains with controlling force, regardless of qualifications and service rendered, in a large majority of the counties of this state; (6) to retain the county superintendent in the service of the school as long as he renders efficient, acceptable service; (7) to dignify the office of county superintendent by attracting to it per- sons of special fitness and qualifications; an-d (8) to make the work of the county superintendent a profession, therel)y placing it upon the same basis with that of the work of the city super- intendent." The argument herein set forth is recognized as being funda- mentally sound by practically all leading school authorities. By resolutions the Texas State Teachers' Association has unanimously approved this method of electing county superintendents. In Jan- uarv, 1912, the executive committee of the association succeeded in having introduced into the Thirty-third Legislature a bill in accordance with these resolutions. There is little doubt but that the bill which, without serious opposition, was given favorable report by the Committee on Education in both the House and the Senate, would have passed the Legislature but for the crowded con- dition of the calendar which precluded its consideration. The principle of this method of selecting county superintendents is now embodied in the laws of several of the states, — Louisiana, Iowa, and Ohio being araono- the latest to adopt it. 40 Bulletin of tlie University of Texas Inadequate Salaries. In perfecting tlie plan of rural school supervision, the matter of the county superintendent's salar}' must be borne in mind. The present maximum of $1,500 is insufficient to retain the services of the best school men. This salary, after deducting campaign expenses and transportation expenses in visiting the schools, is about equivalent to a .$1"200 position in the town schools. Further, the latter posi- tion gives the advantage of a vacation or an opportunity for sum- mer school work or study. The county board of education should he authorized to determine the superintendent's salary from year to year just as the district hoards of trustees now determine the salaries of teachers and superintendents. Need of Clerical Help. Efficiency in the office of the county superintendent would be further increased by the provision of clerical help in the more populous counties. Much of the county superintendent's time is necessarily consumed in the performance of small details which could be done by a less expensive person. Putting a fifteen hun- dred dollar man at a three hundred dollar job is not economy. Office details must receive attention. But we should discontinue a blundering and short-sighted extravagance that compels the county superintendent to neglect the larger educational problems of his field. Each county hoard of education should at least he permitted to exercise discretion as to whether or not clerical help should he provided for the county superintendent. From the standpoint of needed laws governing the office of county superintendent, the foi-egoing discussion may be summar- ized as follows : The largest single measure of constructive school legislation which the Thirty-fourth Legislature could enact would be that of extending county supervision to all counties and of making the county superintendent a professional school officer selected by the couniy hoard at such salary as his services warrant. State Appohtionment for Country High Schools. The Rural High School Law enacted by the Thirty-second Legis- lature represents a constructive step in the history of pulilic edu- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 41 TENURE OF OFFICE OF County Superintendents in Texas 120 COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS. 55 HAVE SERVED FOR TWO YEARS OR LESS. 96 HAVE SERVED AN AVERAGE OF 2.3 YEARS. 96 HAVE SERVED ONLY AS MANY YEARS AS THE REMAINING 24. Long tenure is usually found in the few counties where the two-term practice does not prevail for political offices. SOLUTION LIES IN SEPARATION OF SCHOOLS AND POLITICS ■42 Bulletin of the University of Texas cation; but the difficulties encountered have required tedious nego- tiations, the result of which lias limited the benefits to be derived. These difficulties could be easily obviated, and the law accomplish in every county all that was contemplated, by extending and defin- ing more accurately the jurisdiction of the county board of edu- cation. Creation, Changing, and Consolidation of Districts. Under the present law there is a dual authority dealing with the creation and consolidation of school districts. The commis- sioners' court is given authority to create districts, and to change the boundaries of districts. The county board is authorized to consolidate school districts for high school purposes. Instances are of record where these two authorities have come into serious conflict, where the county board has effected a consolidation which the commissioners' court subsequently attempted to destroy. As A rule, the commissioners' court is too busily engaged in other business affairs to give proper attention to school matters, and ■often its actions are determined by political considerations. On the other hand, the county board whose business is devoted solely to school matters is in a better position to know what the schools need. Moreover, the latter body is a non-political body, whose actions are independent of other questions. Tliis dual autliority is unnecessary and confusing, and a law should he enacted vesting solely in the county board of education all authority to create, change, or consolidate school districts. Appropriations for High Schools. Another confusing provision of the Eural High School Law is that relating to the transfer of funds for high school purposes. The cost of high school instruction is necessarily more than the cost of instruction for the primary and intermediate grades. The small one-teacher and two-teacher schools do not, as a rule, object to the transfer of high school pupils, but they often protest bitterly against the transfer of funds from the apportionment that has been made to their districts. The county board is confronted on the one hand with the duty of providing competent instruction for high school pupils, and on the other hand with no funds what- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 43 soever except by confiscation of the money which has already been apportioned to the several districts. As a result, friction is often engendered between the county board and the local boards of trus- tees, the outcome of which is generally the failure to provide high school advantages for high school pupils. Even if the operation of the law did not carry the odium of ill feeling, its enforcement would still l)e cumbersome since every pupil transferred requires a negotiation by one board iDctween the other two boards. Facts here given show conclusively that the provision of high school facilities would become several times as effective if the county board were given each year a comparatively small appro- priation for the specific purpose of arranging for the tuition of high school pupils. A small part of the state available school funds could be apportioned to the several counties in lump sum without reducing materially the usual per capita apportionment. This plan would enable the county board to transfer pupils of high school advancement to the larger, centralized communities without unnecessary friction. The use of this apportionment should, whenever necessary, be restricted to the purposes desig- nated. An amendment of the law giving a small part of the state apportionment to the county hoard for high school purposes, will greatly facilitate the work of the county board in providing coun- trii high schools at convenient places throughout the county. 44 Bulletin of the Universiti/ of Texas V. THE RURAL CHURCH. The industrial, social, educational, and religious activities of nn-al life are so mutually interrelated with and interdependent upon each other that this pamphlet would he incomplete without some mention of the rural church. AVhile it was not the purpose of this stud_y to make an intensive church survey, the field agents were instructed to gather all the information they could bearing upon the. conditions of the rural church in the counties visited. This was done through conferences with pastors, laymen, and church officials of approximately 125 rural church communities. Time did not permit the compilation of any very extensive data, but a sufficient amount of information was gathered to warrant some fairly definite conclusions. Tliese are summarily mentioned as follows: (a) Church Growth and Material Development. In those parts of the state where the rural population is increasing rapidly and a majority of tlie people own their homes, the country churches are prospering and growing in membership more than in those sections where the growth in population is less and a high per- centage of tenancy obtains; e. g., in Collin county, where there has been a falling off of 2.1 per cent in population diiring the past decade and 68.9 per cent of tlie farmers are tenants, 21 out of 33 rural churches observed are suffering for want of paint and win- dow panes; while in Nacogdoches county, where there has been an increase of 10 per cent in population during the past ten years and 60.1 per cent of the white farmers own their homes, most of the country church buildings are in much better condition. (b) The Village Church vs. the Country Church. In the most densely populated portions of the state, particularly in the black land counties, there are numerous small villages that range iH' size from 500 to 1200 ])eop]e. Most of these little towns have well equipped churcJi plants and some of them maintain resident pastors for full time. When tlie roads permit, many of tlie thrift- ier people of the surrounding country drive into town on Sunday to attend services. This takes away from the counti'y churclies many of those who are ablest to support tliem, and generates a feeling of class consciousness on the part of tlie poorer ones, who A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 45 resent the idea of going to town to church, whicli in some instances is causing rural cliurch depletion and a high percentage of church- less countr}' people. (e) Underpaid Ministr;/. The poor pay for rui'al pastors is due to two causes: first, the general need for education on the part of the laymen in giving ; second, weakness and lack of ability in leadership on the part of the pastors. At A., in east Texas, Eev. B. preached to a small Baptist church for an entire year with- out pay. One member at the close of the year proposed that a subscription he taken for Rev. B. The amount of $55 was very punctually subscribed, and more could have l^een raised easily, but Eev. B. exclaimed, "That's enough." Maybe it was, and possibly too much. But this remains sure, that on the average the count ri/ man gives /t^s«, and gots less for ivhat he gives, than the citi/ church member. (d) Absentee Pastors. In each of the live counties investi- gated, practically 100 per cent of the country preachers had two or more pastorates^some as high as five. A large majority of the churches have non-resident ministers. No pastor, e\en though he be an able one, can give his church adecpiate direction if he does not live among it.- members. He may start good things, but it is hard to keep them going when he is .al)sent most of the time. When he pays his usual monthly visit he finds only a cold trail of what was started the month previous. Churches do not thrive on absent treatment. (e) Over-churching. The church surveys tliat have been made at the instance of the Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian •Church in Ohio, Missouri, and Tennessee show very conclusively that the small church is a dying church. Though the committee that gathered the material for this IniUetin was limited both as to time and means, and could not take an extensive rural church census as it desired to do, it has ample reasons for believing that the average small church in Texas is just as inefficient as it is elsewhere. At some places in the more populous counties there are too many small, weak churches. Xot uncommonly a village of five hundred people will have fi'oin three to five churches when it is not physically and financially able to support more than one. This is a waste of means and a dissipation of energy. In many instances consolidation is as essential to the success and ivell being 46 Bulletin of tJie University of Texas of the cliurch as school consolidation is to the schools. The future would be brighter for the smaller Protestant churches if they could see their way clear to put aside some of their petty sectarian dif- ferences and federate under the broad-minded leadership of a capable resident pastor for worship and for work in bettering their community. In some instances the consolidation of churches in the same denomination would solve the difficulty. To perform its mission in the fullest sense the country church must be a commu- nity church rather than a denominational church. (f) Sectarianism. Interdenominational religious debates are quite common and almost universally productive of hard feeling and unnecessary discord. Many concrete instances might be given where congregations of the same faith have been split over the most trivial theological questions. The following case is a typical one : A country church in Texas, after much bitterness manifested among its membei's, divided and formed two churches over the question. "Who made the devil?"' Whoever made this evil mon- ster, the actions of these followers of Christ indicate conclusively that there was not only a devil, but that he was abundantly present in the community at the time and place mentioned. The people of this church might have profitably united to fight the devil in- stead of dividing in the endeavor to find his source and cause. (g) Broad-minded Ministry. At a small village in Bosque county the boys and young men had formed a civic league for the purpose of improving, beautifying, and making the place more sanitary. At a meeting of this league when a member of the De- partment of Extension of the University was present, the local pastor sat on one side of the president and the public school prin- cipal on the other. This represented a healthy unity of interests. The preacher was the main moving spirit in this good work for the betterment of the physical well being of his fellow men. The same important infiuence could be exercised by hundreds of other ministers in their respective communities. Christ ministered to both the physical and the spiritual wants of his followers. He fed the hungry and healed the blind as well as cast out unclean spirits. A German pastor who was taking the lead in establishing a rural credit association for his community justified hi:? action by saying : "It is better for me to do what I can to prevent my neighbor from becoming poor than to wait until he is poor and A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 47 "then pass around the hat for charity."' Tlie same might be said with regard to his neighbor's health. Too many pastors concern themselves entirely with the spiritual welfare of their flocks. They should be the civic and social leaders as well as the spiritual ad- visers of their communities. They should be preachers and broad- minded citizens at the same time. For example, a minister who' accepted the three-fold relation to his community of county farmi demonstrator, commercial secretarj^, and pastor, said if he worked well in the first two positions for six days in the week, then told about it on Sunday, his congregations never M'ent to sleep because It is a sad fact that a large per cent of the country churches presented such an uninviting appearance on the outside as to make improb- able any considerable spiritual enthusiasm on the inside. of dry sermons. This statement may not be entirely orthodox, but it at least shows that ministers are endowed with ordinary human instincts and that sermons need not he so mysterious as to exclude the common events of men's lives. Let not these statements be construed as a failure to appreciate the services which tlie country ministers of the various denomina- tions have given. The life of the average minister has been one of sacrifice, consecration, and devotion to duty. Our civilization 48 Bulletin of the University of Texas is under a lasting debt to the church and its influence; and the need for the leaven of the church will l)ecome larger with the progress of the future. (h) Social Activities. "So far as church social recreation is concerned," said a i)astor in the town of Nacogdoches, "\'ou will get a water haul in this count}'. Absolutely nothing is being done." This seems to be generally true throughout the state. Pastors and •church members do not seem to realize that people go wrong mostly ■during their leisure hours; and that if right social diversion and recreation are not provided for Iheni they will take what they can get, and this is often the most contaminating sort. Cheap shows and the most questionable kinds of commercialized entertainments -continue to flourish because there is nothing better to take their places. The church and the church people have no unworked field so fertile with the possibilities for good as that of providing the means for healthy, wholesome, social recreation; yet it is almost' entirely neglected, and in many places because of narrow-minded- ness and religious bigotry is well nigh iinpracticable. (i) Church Buildings. In the observations made, the appear- ance of the physical church plant in most cases indicated a lower standard and a less degree of community pride than did the school- house. Many communities maintaining new and well kept school buildings had at the same time one or two dilapidated churches which gave evidence of general neglect. In only a few instances were the churches of a higher standard than their own school- houses, such cases being confined as a rule to communities where most people were affiliated with the same church and a parsonage was maintained in connection with it. The standards were more nearly equal in east Texas, where the churches were better and the schoolhouses poorer than in other sections of the state. It is a sad fact that a large per cent of the country churches presented such an uninviting appearance on the outside as to make improb- able any considerable spiritual enthusiasm on the inside. While the spirituality of a church cannot be determined by the exterior or interior beauty of its building, if is certainly true that the church building must be made an attractive model of comfort, sanitation, and pjrogress if the church institution is to hold its influence as a factor for community betterment. A Sludij of Rural Schools in Tcrat 4'.) HAl'TIST CHURCH AT THE LITTLE TOWN OF ANNA IN COLLIN COUNTY. WALNUT GROVE I'RESBYTERIAN CHURCH. The nnly rural clunch in Collin cinmty that maintains a resident j^jastor for full time. 50 BuUciin of the University of Texas VI. THE RUEAL SCHOOLS OF HARRIS COUNTY. (The Banner Public School Count)- of Texas.) Hiatory, Location, and Economic Status. Harris county was organized in 1837, and constituted one of tiie original counties of the state. Harrisburg, now a suburb of the city of Houston, the county site of Harris count}^, was one time the temporary capital of the Texas Republic. About twenty miles from Houston on the west bank of the San Jacinto River is the historic San Jacinto battlefield, where Texas' independence was decided by General Sam Houston's victory over Santa Anna's Mexican troops, April 21, 1836. Harris county borders on Galveston Bay, in the southeastern part of the state, and lies entirely within the coastal-plains belt. It has an area of 1761 square miles, and the surface is so level that in many places artificial drainage is necessary. It is traver.-ied by numerous sluggish creeks and bayous wdth deep muddy chan- nels that were in an early day a very great hindrance to travel. The land where it is sandy and underlaid with light clay sub- soil is often thin and lacking in fertility. Possibly more than half of the county is of this nature. Most of it is covered with a growth of pine, oak, and gum timber, and in many places saw- mills are operated. In those portions where the soil is of the deep black waxy sort and is properly drained it yields abundant crops. Corn, cotton, rice, fruit, and garden vegetables are the principal products. A considerable area is devoted to truck growing and diversified farming. In those sections where the soil is good and tlie roads have been improved so as to give practical access to the markets, there are many small farms devoted to the production of fruit, early vegetables, berries, and melons. In connection with these truck farms a dairy and poultry busi- ness is quite often conducted on a small scale. Much attention is given to the breeding of fine dairy cattle and the raising of good chickens. For the most part, the small poultry yards and dairv barns are maintained for the purpose of supplying eggs,. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 51 milk, cream, and butter to the city of Houston, while the larger dairy farms supply the creameries at Houston and Alvin. Relatively speaking, the Harris county farmers enjoy a high degree of economic independence. Most of them own their land,. and produce the larger portion of their living at home. Of all the farms in the county, 74.3 per cent are operated by their own- ers, and of these 77.9 per cent are free from all mortgage debts. This contrasts very sharply with some of the counties in the rich lilack land belt of the state where as high as 70 out of each 100 farmers do not own the land they cultivate ; where a one-crop system dominates, and most of the people look to the town grocery store for all they eat, and a majority of their children attend rural schools that are but little less than deplorable. The success of the Harris county common schools is in part attributable to the unusually large percentage of home owners in the county. Tlce freeholder with a 'permanent home will nat- urally enter into the life of the community more freely and enthu- siastically than the roving tenant farmer who seldom stays at one place long enough to get himself thoroughly identified with the church, school, and civic interests of the neighborhood. The home- less man is at best limited very materially in his usefulness as a citizen. He may be a good school patron, but the exhilarating stimulus of home ownership would make him a better one. It might be well to note that home getting in Harris county has so far been relatively a very easy matter. Though land constitutes 72.9 per cent of the entire wealth of the count}^, it can still be bought at reasonably low prices. Unimproved land can be had for $2.5 to $50 per acre, and improved land for $30 to $100 per acre. 'At present less than 14 per cent of all the land has been taken for agricultural purposes, and the rural population is less than 26 persons per square mile. Note the difference in Collin county : All the land except a few overflowing creek bottoms is in cultivation; prices range from $80 to $225 per acre; tlie rural population is 49 persons per square mile, and 69 farmers in every 100 are tenants. 52 Bulletin of the U.nivcrsitu of Texas Market Facilities, Roads, and Transportation. No coimty in the ?tate is better supplied with all the agencies of modern transportation. Houston is served by eleven steam railways and one internrban car line. They approach it from all points of the compass. The county has been formed into a navi- gation district, and $1/350,000 raised by the issuance of bonds, together with a like amount appropriated by the federal govern- ment, is being expended on the improvement of Buffalo Bayou from Galveston Bay to Harrisburg so as to secure deep-water facilities for ocean-going vessels. The county has 305 miles of shell roads that have been constructed at a cost of $4500 per mile, and recently additional bonds for $1,250,000 were issued for the further extension of the same class of highways. In addition, there are 2300 miles of well graded dirt roads, costing $150 per mile. AVhile the railways ha^•e meant much for the making of Houston and the industrial development of the outlying districts, these country roads have been of inestimable value in bringing about the best system of common rural schools to be found anywhere in Texas. Good country roads open the way to better country schools. Through the agency of good roads the large consolidated school districts of Harris county have been made possible, and the small, poorly taught, poorly attended country schools have in most instances ceased to be a necessity. There are now fifty com- mon school districts in the county, with an average area of 32..") square miles each. This is more than five times as large as many of the districts among the sand roads of the cross timbers, and more than ten times the size of some in the black land portions of central and north Texas. Transportation of Pupils at Public Expense. AVith the impiovement of the roads and the consequent enlarge- ment of the school units, school boards have seen fit to put on wagons operated at public expense to haul the children to and from school. Six such conveyances are now in use, and carry 196 children at an average per capita cost of 94 cents per month. Eighty children are carried daily in the large covered van over the perfectly level shell road from Magnolia Park to Harrisburg. Each A Studii of Rural Schools in 'rc.ras 53 child has its regular seat in the wagon, and is directly in charge of tlie driver, who is responsible to the school board for its con- dnct. The wagon is run on schedule time, and the children reach school with dry feet and are never tardy. The people like the plan and prefer it to the maintaining of a small school in their immediate locality. This wagon is operated at a cost of $37.50 per month. Economically it is a great saving, to say nothing of the increased benefits that come to the children fiom attending the large, well equipped, central school. In the same district at Park Place, where a small pay school is being kept, the people Shell road sixteen miles north of Houston. There are 305 miles like this in the countj'. The recent election for the issuance of $1,250,000 of additional road bonds was carried by a large majority. The good-roads spirit, like the good-school spirit, is contagious. When it once gets well started, everybody catches it. have recently petitioned for another wagon rather than for a new free school. This will make the third wagon of the kind in the Harrisburg district. District No. 25, just north of Houston, is one of the largest common school districts in the state. It has 72 square miles of territory, IGil scholastics, seven schools, and 33 teachers. Two public wagons are used to carry those who have finished at the grammar schools to the large central high school, and one time 5-4 Bulirtin of the University of Texas each week the seventh grade pupils are taken in the same way to the high school for instruction in manual training and domestic science. In a talk with the principal of one of the grammar schools, the question was asked : What about transporting your seventh grade pupils to the central high school? He answered, "It is just the article. It is stimulating, and gives them a change of environment once a week. Then it fosters a love for the mother school. Our boA's used to finish here and then go — well, I don't know where. Xow they go to the central high school, and arc anxious to get there." Two years ago the school at Middle Bayou was paying one teacher $55 per month. It has since been discontinued, and is now transported boflily over the shell road to Seabrook, a distance of three and one-half miles, at a net saving of $25 jx^r month to llic community. At Addicks, twenty miles north of Houston, one of tlie small schools of the district will be closed and transported to the large central school when the new shell road is completed. Since these children will be distributed among the grades of the central school, no additional teacher will be required for them. Their instruction is nov/ costing $-liO per year. The transporta- tion wagon can be operated the full eight months for $340, and thus save $200 for the district. "WTien one of the Harrisburg vans passed by containing about sixty-five merry school children drawn by a single span of mules, an old gardener who lives seven miles from Houston, said : "Well, don't you know, liaulin' them kids is just like haulin' my tomatoes. You can load your wagon with 'em, but you can't load your team. I can pull three times as much now as I could before these roads was fixed.*" Good roads ckaiupiun the cause of education. A dollar judi- ciously expended for road improvement is a dollar expended f^r educational and social betterment. Clubs, Social Meetings, and Athletic Sports. Through the combined efforts of the county farm demonstrator, Mr. J. B. Alford, and County Superintendent L. L. Pugh, the boys' agricultural club movement is becoming more closely con- nected with the school work. Mr. Alford taught in the public A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 55 3^S _5 T) dp r p * TQ 3 ■• 56 B idle tin of the Uiiiversitii of Texas f^chools of Texas for fourteen years, and knows conutry life con- ditions thoroughl}'. For tliis reason he is especially well fitted for appealing to the boys' industrial instincts through the school. He has a fine knowledge of boy nature, a good understanding of tiie problems of agriculture and farm management, is a magnetic public speaker, and spends most of his time working among the country people. He owns a small car, and this, in conjunction with the excellent roads, enables him to roach more people pos- sibly than any other county farm demonstrator in the state. Harris county has thirty-five active' mothers' clubs outside of the city of Houston. Most of them are in effect parent-teachers' clubs. They have been a tiemendous influence in bettering school condi- tions. For the 26 brick buildings, 115 pianos, 200 sanitary toilets, and libraries, numerous pictures, and other equipment in the common schools, no small portion of the credit \evy justly falls to the efforts of the organized mothers and the lady teachers. Tliey have assisted in the purchase of most of the pianos, and have acted as first aides to the county superintendent in every campaign for the sanitation, equipment, and beautifying of the school plants. Eural social life in Harris county is not what it should be. The "Ocial natures of botli parents and children are generally suffeimg from neglect and lack of opportunity. The social instincts on the average do' not get a fair chance. Social advantages as a rule are not at all in keeping with the substantial brick and frame school buildings throughout the county. In many instances this defi- ciency is breeding discontent and kindling the townward tendency in the minds of the most ambitious country young folks. People floe from social stagnation when it stares them in the face. II is a perfectly natural thing to shun solitude and seek companionship and entertainment. "VAHien the social stimulus is not provided at home, people go elsewhere to find it. At one school with four teachers, sixteen miles in the countrv, there were eight hoys doing high school work, and when asked what they meant to do after graduation, the unanimous verdict was, "I want to go to Houston to attend the business college and ecjuip myself to hold a position in the city." The boys gave no partitidar reason for not wanting to stay in the country more than that they did iiot like it. Why didn't they like it? The cause was not far to seek. Xote the following questions and answers: .i Stuchj of Rural Schools in I^e.ras 57 "What do you do for pastiuie ?"" "Well, nothing specially." "Have you a ball team?" "Yes, but it is mighty weak." "When have you had a public gathering of any sort in the school- house?" "'Not since November. Almost three montbs." "What do you do when Sunday comes?" "Sometimes we go to cliurcli if there is any." "How often do you have church services ?" "Once a month at one of the churches, and just whenever they can get a preacher at the other one." ^^^lo can blame tliese boys for not wanting to stay there ? They were dying of social hunger. Their discontent and the desire to get away are the very strongest evidences that there is really some- thing in them inherently worth while. If they had been satisfied Math such an environment it would have been because they were genuinely stupid fellows. These boys will leave that community, and it will be the worse off for their going. They are, in fact, the very Ijoys it can. least afford to lose — they are the best it has. Thus the town is levying a tiibute on the country which it takes each year in tbe foi'm of some of its very best blood. Biologically this means a rapid lowering of the life tension and blood ^ i^or of the country people. Those remaining behind become the domi- nant stock and reproduce their kind for another generation. I' [)on these the same sorting process is repeated. The country lias cause for alarm. But the normal hoy liJces to he where something is happening, and if you luoiild retain him in the cnnntnj you must have something doing to Iceep him there. The above is an extreme case and by no means typical for the entire county. The schoolhouses are being used to some extent as- community centers where teachers, parents, and pupils meet each other, exchange ideas, and get better acquainted. This is true at Dairy, Pasadena, Seabrook, Aldine, and -a number of other places. With a better understanding of each other a healthier commuuity spirit inevitably follows. Matters of common concern are given more attention, and life in the country is made more tolerable. As a rule the school interest and tJie educatiomil and social ideals of a community can be measured hy the consideration 58 BuUeiin of the Univ'.'rsifij of Texas Plavtrn.uiKl apparatus at the Berry School, eiglit miles north of Houston. Tnterschohistic Atliletic Meet at 1<'ullcrt(>\\ n ychool, Novenilwr, lit 13. Five hundred people were present. Dinner was served to the crowd by tile gills who were takincr doniestie eeoninny in the school. A Study of Rural ^Schools in Texas 59 which its people give %o the importance of community meetings. Recently the University of Texas has launched an organization known as the University Home and School League. Its purpose is to encourage community co-operation for social, educational, and indu^frial betterment through a more intensive use of the school plant. The Univer.sity will work in connection with these organi- zation? by sending them lecturers, library books, suggestive pro- grams, and stereopticon lanterns with slides that pertain to almost everything that has to do with the farm, the home, and the school. Harris county means to take advantage of this opportunity. Pros- pect.« are that it will be the banner Home and School League county of the state. At the instance of the county superintendent, $l.'30u has been raised by private subscription to secure a trained man who will go into the field and give his full time to this woi'k. 'J'he teachers and parents among the rural and village schools are doing much to encourage the right kind of play among the children. Through the efforts of the local mothers' clubs the yards have been improved, trees planted, sheds built, and swings, hori- zontal bars, and other outdoor play apparatus provided at many places. The busiest and most active animal in the world is a healthy growing child. Children often suffer, and even become unruly and incorrigible because their parents and teachers do not provide adequate and systematic play. By rightly solving the play problem many of the difficulties of both parents and teachers are rendered less perplexing. To stimulate a lively interest and encourage the spirit of friendly rivalrv among the schools, many track meets and interscholastic athletic contests have been held during the past. year. Mr. 0. A. Heath, president of the county interscholastic league, is himself a good athlete, and has done much to make this work successful. Possibly nothing has ever done more to create school loyalty and keep the older students in school than the contests in baseball, basketball, volleyball, and tennis during the past school year. Teachers. Tliere arc ITS white teachers in the common public schools — 30 males and 143 females — with an average teaching experience of six Tears. Thev hold teachers' certificates as follows: 39 j)erma- 60 Bulletin of the University of Texas nent, 76 first grade, 58 second grade. Theie are 34 teachers who are either college or normal graduates, and 21 who have had from one to four years of university training ; 93 are teaching the same schools they taught last year, and 62 are teaching the same schools they taught two years ago. A comparison of figures shows that both in academic training and in schoolroom experience the Hnrris county teachers are far above the average for the state. The accompanying figure shows the relative standing of the Harris county teachers as indicated by their certificates. The average teaching experience is approximately six years, as against approximately four years for the state. While 13.9 per cent of the rural teachers of this county are either college or normal grad- uates, the average for Texas is 1.1 per cent. It was not possible to determine accurately the average time taught at the same place, but it is no doubt very short. This is explained by the fact tiiat for the past few years there has been a very strong demand for capable, well prepared teachers, and this has often necessitated going out of the county (frequently to the state normals) to get them. As a result, old teachers have been crowded out to give place to new and better blood. As a further explanation, for the past five or six 3'enrs there has been a great number of teachers over the state anxious and even seeking opportunities to locate in tliis county. Physical Features of the Public Schools. Because of the extreme flatness of the country some of the school grounds do not drain well, and are badly in need of grading and filling in. But in a majority of places, especially at the larger central schools, cement walks, lawns, shrubbery, and shade trees have been provided. The contests among the schools last year did much for the general improving and beautifying of the school grounds. The twenty-five dollar prize for the best designed and best kept school yard was won by the Harlow School. During his ten years of service the present county superintendent has made it a rule to work out one or two things well at a time. For the past two years a vigorous crusade has been waged against the unsightly open closets — breeders of disease and promoters of immorality. Tavo hundred of these have been replaced by the modern, sanitary tyjx?. A Siudij of Rural Schools in Texas Gl Dj^- •TS T S ^ ^ Cu ' rn 5i r;;^ Ml > n 1 PiTi n n i''^ TO ^ (A V^ n n ►1 <» (^ 3 Hi « A- ^ 3 ■ID n a: w • 1—1 c; n? -1^ 3D o 6? Bulletin of the Universit;/ of Texas A Studif of Bural Schools in Texas 63 Haklow Brick School. Won the $25 prize for llie best kept sehool ground in tlie county la:-t yoar. Gexoski School, in District No. 25. Most of the children are Italians. The shade trees are beiuitifu-l, and the premises are well kept. 64 Bullciin of the University of 'Texas The past five yeai's have witnessed some wouderful progress in the constrnetiou of school buildings. About fifteen consolidations have been made during this time, and many of the old buildings have been torn away and replaced by new modern structures. Dur- ing the past two and one-half years $325,000 has been expended in this way. Though some excellent frame houses have been built, most of the new ones are brick. One of the new brick buildings is heated throughout with steam, and four of them with the liot- air system. About fifty jacketed stoves are in use. The dispo- sition of window space for proper lighting in most cases is good. As for ventilation, it is not such a serious question so far south, where the doors and windows can be thrown open almost every day of the year, as it is farther north, where the winters are longer and more severe. As to cleanliness and orderliness, practically all rooms in the larger schools are kept in good condition. All the new schools are equipped with modern furniture. Noth- ing but single desks have been installed for the past ten years. Every school in the county is well supplied with globes, maps, and liyloplate blackboards. But for the most part laboratories for the leaching of the natural sciences and the manual and domestic arts have not yet been* developed. Even in this respect, however, some of the larger schools are well equipped. Three of them (Fuller- ton, Hillebrandt, and Harrisburg) have in addition to their gen- eral science-laboratory apparatus, a total of thirty-six individual work benches with full sets of tools for manual training; seven sewing machines for domestic science; and ranges, lockers, and such accessory equipment as is necessary to accommodate twenty- one girls at a time for cooking lessons. Educational Si/steni in Operation. As elsewhere in the state, the local school trustees^ the county boaid of education, and the commissioners' court are the governing boards in the county's school affairs. The distinguishing feature in this county is their close and unanimous co-operation with the county superintendent. The local boards of trustees are composed mainly of men who have a fair degree of business ability. They hold all their important business meetings in the county super- intendent's office, and for the past eight years a permanent record J A Study of Rural Schools in Texas GT) of the minutes of all such meetings has been kept on file for ref- erence. This practice is possibly not followed so closely in any other county in the state. The county board of education is com- posed of five progressive men who are in harmony, and recognize the leadership of the county superintendent. To enable the latter officer to spend his time in the field visiting /the schools and ad- ministering to their needs, the commissioners' court provides him a secretary, who attends to all the clerical work of the office. In co-operation with the above named boards and officials the county physician is rendering some very valuable service to the public schools. A large number of the schools have been inspected by him during the past year, and many sanitary and precautionary measures adopted as a result. While the work has by no means been carried to the extent it has been in some of the northern cities, yet many country children have been examined individually for defective eyesight, hollow teeth, and adenoids. As many as fifteen children were treated for adenoids in one school. Some- thing over 600 vaccinations were made during the past 3'ear. With the help of a capable stenographer and the further assist- ance of a good Studebaker car and the well kept shell roads. Superintendent Pugh's service to the schools of the county has been multiplied many times. With the exception of about five regular office hours each week, he spends all his time among the schools advising with patrons, trustees, and teachers. By spending most of his time in the field at the points where his services were most needed, lie has aided largely in some highly commendable consolidations and school building, and helped to place a high school education within easy reach of more than 6000 of the 8327 country children of Harris county. With the further extension of the shell roads that will be made in the near future, a number of the smaller schools will be discontinued and the pupils trans- ported at public expense to the large central schools. One-fourth of all the children of free school age in the county reside in three very large districts. These three districts have a total of 2581 children enrolled, and employ a total of fifty-one literary teachers. Each employs a district superintendent, who does some teaching, but spends most of his time supervising, or- ganizing, and otherwise directing the work of the teachers who are immediately under him. The three districts maintain three high 66 Bulletin of the University of Texas schools of the first chiss, offering courses in manual training and the domestic arts in addition to the usual academic branches. This work, both in the academic branches and in the vocational subjects, is recognized and accepted course for course by the Houston High School, which is regarded everywhere as one of the best high schools in the state. In the course of this survey, the physical condition of fifteen of the large brick buildings was carefully examined, and the cost of construction ascertained. The writer can say that the Harris county people have received as good value for their money ex- pended in this way as he has ever seen. Only one of the build- ings examined was found to be in the least defective. Nor was this defect serious, — just a small crack in one of the walls. No- where has more graft been imposed on the unsuspecting public than in the construction of school buildings by unscrupulous con- tractors who have taken advantage of inexperienced school boards. Shoddy school buildings are literally strewn all over the state. But this is not true in Harris county. Here is the explanation of it. The county superintendent has had much experience in this sort of work, and is always the chief adviser when plans and speci- fications are adopted and contracts awarded. Another good piece of business economy practiced in the admin- istration of these schools is the simple but unique method adopted for buying school supplies. The school boards and principals make up estimates of the amount and kind of supplies that will be needed for their respective schools. These include stationery, raffia, garden seed, apparatus, seats, — all articles of schoolroom equipment. When an estimate for the total amount needed for the ensuing year has been procured in this way, bids are submitted by the dealers. By this simple method of co-operation the schools get the advantage of wholesale prices and a better grade of mate- rial than if purchases were made a piece at a time from the shrewd agent of some school-supply house. School boards never buy a single piece of equipment without first consulting the county super- intendent as to the kind and quality that should be secured. It is also pleasing to note that the credit of every school in the county is good anywhere in the city of Houston. It has been the policy of the administration to keep. up the credit of the common school districts, and this has been a very potent factor in their A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 67 success. When the present writer was once upon a time employed by a retail lumber company, the first piece of instruction he had from the management was to this effect: "Do not sell anything to a country school board unless it is a cash proposition. Such debts are hard to collect. We do not want that sort of trade." But the opposite condition obtains in Harris county. School boards can get what they want at any time they please, and busi- ness men are anxious to accommodate them. The office of county superintendent was created in Harris countj twenty-seven years ago. Since then four men have been elected to it. The first two were in office four j'ears each, the third nine years, and the fourth, the present one, ten years. He is now a candidate for re-election without an opponent. It seems the Har- ris county people have realized the folly of turning a capable, well trained man out of this highly important office every four years for no other reason than the proverbial second term. The excellent constructive and administrative work done by Superintendent Pugh during the past ten years should emphasize to voters, laymen, and school patrons everywhere the need of re- moving the selection of the county superintendent from the squalor of politics and placing it in the hands of some administrative board. This board should have all the power of a city school board, and be free to seek outside the county, or if need be out- side the state, for a man who is adapted to the office by his pro- fessional merits. With this reform, good superintendents will be held longer in office; without it, we may except to continue to see the politician who pretends to teach school aspiring and making himself available for it. The following is a summary of interesting facts about the Harris county district schools: 1. There are thirty-five mothers' club organizations. 2. Every school district in the county has voted a local mainte- nance tax. 3. The amount of $125,000 is raised annually by local tax- ation for the purpose of school maintenance. 4. The school building bonds issued during the past two and one-half years amount to $325,000. 5. There are twenty-six brick school buildings in the common school districts. 68 Bulletin of the University of Texas 6. There are two hundred odorless, fly-proof, sanitary closets in use. 7. The schools have in all 115 pianos. 8. Six wagons are being operated at public expense to carry children to and from school. 9. There are fifty school districts in the county, with an aver- age area of 32.5 square miles each. 10. There is a total of 173 white teachers employed. 11. Three of the largest school districts employ district super- intendents. 12. The largest district in the county has 1641 pupils, seven schools, thirty-three teachers, and two public transportation wagons. 13. The present county superintendent has been in the office for the past ten years. 14. The county superintendent uses an automobile to make his school visitations. 15. The commissioners' court furnishes a stenographer to the county superintendent. Svmmary of the Causes that Have Contributed to Educational Development of Harris County. 1. Good country roads. 2. Seventy-four per cent of the farmers own their homes. 3. The rural population has increased 73 per cent during the pa!-i ten years, and the ingress of new people with new ideas has beeu a wonderful stimulus. 4. The county superintendent has progressive educational ideas, and has the courage to put them into effect. 5. With the assistance of good roads, an automobile, and ade- quate office help, the services of the county superintendent have been multiplied many fold. 6. The present county superintendent has been in office ten years, and thoroughly understands the people, the local conditions, and the needs of every district in the county. 7. Mothers' clubs and local improvement associations have con- tributed all that could be expected. 8. The city of Houston with its advanced governmental ideas A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 69 and excellent systems of schools has had an unconscious construc- tive influence far out into the country. 9, Interscholastic athletic contests among the schools have done much to develop the latent possibilities of many school commu- nities. 10. The superintendent's annual report of more than 100 pages each year has had a good effect. It has given the people of each district a chance to see what those of other districts are doing, and the spirit of friendly rivalry and the desire to excel have thus been created. Pasadena School in Harris County. (The Schoolhouse is the Industrial, Educational, and Social Center of the Community.) The Pasadena school district is on the Southern Pacific Eail- road, ten miles southeast of Houston. About three and one-half miles of track lie within it. Buffalo Bayou constitutes its north- ern boundary, and it has an area of approximately twenty-three square miles. The people are engaged in farming almost exclusively, though there are three dairies with an average of twenty cows each. The land is black and very rich, and ranges in price from $125 to $400 per acre. The farms are for the most part very small, the culti- vated areas varying from ten to forty acres. Strawberries, vege- tables, and feed stuff are the principal products. The population is predominately American, with about 11 per cent Swedish and German. The Swedes and the Germans have the civic, moral, and educational interest of the community at heart, and are among the very best citizens. There are no negroes, except as day laborers for a few weeks during berry-picking season. One very fortunate thing for this district is that its residents are permanently located and mean to stay there. Though the price of land is high, the matter of diversified farming with small land holdings has solved the problem of home ownership. Eighty- one of the eighty-three farms in the district are operated by their owners. This accounts to a large degree for the fine spirit of public enterprise and the prevalent individual pride in all the civic affairs of the neighborhood. With this kind of a spirit local 70 Bulletin of the University of Texas public improvements come easily. With a population of shifting tenant farmers the reverse condition usually obtains. There is but one school in the district. It is housed in an excel- lent brick building which has five classrooms, a library and read- ingroom, and an auditorium. The classrooms in use are equipped with single desks and with globes, charts, and blackboards. The auditorium has 200 folding chairs, a commodious stage, and a piano. The library contains 400 volumes. It is one of the best selected small school libraries the agent making this survey has ever seen. It was secured through the efforts of the women of the community, the lady teachers, and the school children. A young lady of the community has charge of it. The library hours are from 1 to 3 p. m. each school day. One of the distinguishing features of this community is that the schoolhouse is used more intensively, and for a greater diver- sity of purposes than is often practiced. Two evenings in each month the auditorium is thrown open for social purposes. Here the people of all ages meet in a social way, and probably nothing has contributed more toward the complete unifying of all the in- terests of the community than these meetings. Sometimes the principal feature of the coming together is a debate, a lecture by some representative man from Houston, or a home-talent play gotten up by teachers and young people. At other times the meet- ing is for no other purpose than an informal social good time for all, where friends meet friends and neighbors meet neighbors just for the sake of being together. The auditorium is not seated with the usual opera chairs fastened to the floor. It has, instead, folding chairs that may be easily removed or rearranged to suit any use to which the auditorium may be put. When opera chairs are used just so much floor space in the school building is limited to use as an audtiorium only. The local farmers' institute meets at the schoolhouse regularly in the afternoon of the last Saturday in each month. In an informal way it discusses the many questions pertaining to agri- culture, horticulture, and farm co-operation. The meetings are well attended. The farmers have learned that it is time well spent. The school principal is always on hand, and takes the lead. It is said of him that he will defer any business njatter rather A Study of Rtiral Schools in Texas 71 than absent himself from one of these institutes. He has not missed a meeting in two years. Of late a great deal is being said about community co-operation and rural credit associations in Texas. Before these can ever be had a genuine community spirit must be developed, and this can be engendered only by getting the farm people to meet together more frequently than Texas farmers do. Pasadena is setting the pace. At the time of this investigation 120 pupils were enrolled in sehool. Nineteen of these were doing high school work. The in- Pasadena Public School Building. struction, with the exception of that given in agriculture, was can- fined for the most part to the usual academic branches. Domestic science and manual training have not yet been installed, though patrons and pupils are anxious for them. All the laboratory that the very successful teacher of agriculture has, with the exception of a compound microscope and a few improvised pieces of his own making, is some well regulated truck farms near the school grounds. These he uses with remarkable ingenuity. Four teachers are employed- — a man for principal, and three lady assistants. Two of them are college graduates. Each of the 73 Bulletin of the University of Texas others has liad three years of imivcrsity work, and has completed several correspondence courses besides. They are all permanent residents of the community, and for this reason have a personal interest in its welfare. The principal, Mr. Eoy Glasgow, is the recognized industrial and educational leader of his locality. There is not a more useful man in Pasadena. The patrons of the school know this, and ap- preciate him duly. He is a successful teacher, an excellent farmer, and is proving himself a good business man. Ml. Glasgow is now fort3'-one- years old. He got his academic training at the University of Missouri and the University of Chicago. Though he has never absolved all the technical require- ments, he has done more than the full ninnber of courses required for his bachelor's degree. For ten years he taught science in the high school at Hannibal, Missouri. Four years ago he came to Pasadena and bought a small faim of twenty-five acres. For the two years following he engaged in scientific farming. The third year, lie continued his farming and taught the school at South Houston. During two years of this time he served as a member of the Pasadena school board. One year ago he was elected to his present position. Possibly Mr. Glasgow has rendered no greater service to his patrons at any time than when he took tlie initiative in promoting and organizing the Pasadena Producers' Exchange. The original object of this organization was to market the strawberries of the neighborhood in a better condition and at better prices. The com- mission merchants and local markets were not able to handle the whole crop with satisfactory profits to the producers. Some be- lieved that other markets and better prices could be found if a practical co-operative plan of selling could be devised. Accord- ingly a stock company was organized with five directors and a capital stock of $2000. The stock was sold in $20 shares and subscribed for by eighty local farmers. A regular sales agent was employed at $1000 per year and a bookkeeper at $100 per month. Professor Glasgow was elected president, which position he still holds. To begin witli, the exchange charged the producers 15 cents per crate for marketing their berries. The sales amounted to approxi- mately $90,000 the first season. At the end of the first year's A Sttidij of Rural Schools in Texas 73 business a 50 per cent dividend was declared to tlie stockholders, and there still remained on hand $1800 of undivided profits. But since the object of tliis organization is not to pay dividends, the charges for marketing have now been so reduced that the stock will earn onl_y a fair rate of interest. Office of the Pasadena Producers' Exchange. Next season not less than $150,000 worth of business is expected. At present the stockholders have 284f acres planted in straw- berries. For the entire district there is a total of approximately 330 acres. The crates are furnished to the growers at net cost, and 500,000 strawberry plants and a carload of fertilizer have recently been bought co-operatively by the association. A co- 74 Bulletin of the University of Texas operative cannery is being projected to take care of the second- class products and the local tomato crop. On a farm of twenty-eight acres, located one mile from the school building and planted in berries, fruit trees, vegetables, and feed stuff, Mr. Glasgow made the following profits last year: Strawberries, net $1,500 Dairy, poultry, and garden products, net 400 Fig plants (4000 sold at 7^c each), net 200 Total net profit $2,100 In addition, the farm has produced a good living for Mr. Glas- gow and the other three members of his family, permitting him to set aside untouched his salary of $115 per month for the seven . months school was in session. His total net income from his salary and his farm for the year was approximately $2900. Yet, inconceivable as it may be to hundreds of Texas fanners, he says his farm of twenty-eight acres is too large, and he intends to sell at least ten acres of it. Of course, Mr, Glasgow does not do all the work himself. In fact, he hires the greater portion of it done. "Yes," says the criticising, staid old pedagogue who should have joined the fossil society a generation ago, "but it is impossible for a man to operate a business like that and be as faithful to his school duties as he should be." In reply the representative, who made this survey begs to suggest that all such critics should be encouraged to visit the Pasadena school and see the excellent and enthusiastic work that is being done both by the pupils and the teachers. To be sure, such an undertaking is no small-caliber man's job; but for the man of practical mind and breadth of vision, of industry, and of right understanding of the language and sensibilities of farm- ing people, it is both feasible and practicable. Mr. Glasgow is no prodigy or genius. He is just a common man with common sense and practical ideas that fit him for the farm and the school- room equally well. Texas could use 1000 such teachers today^men of education, industry, and ingenuity to enter the country and village public schools and aid them in the full and complete performance of all the functions they inherently owe to society — civic, industrial. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 75 Barn of a progressive farmer at Pasadena. Packing strawberries for shipment — Pasadena Producers' Exchange. 76 Bulletin of the University of Texas social, and educational. Heretofore the towns have outbid the country places in point of teachers' salaries, and this has had the efTect of reducing many of the country schools to mere practice schools for the training of city teachers. But conditions are slowly ch.ai]ging. Some of the thoughtful teachers are beginning to see th.ac many of the most desirable positions in our entire public school system are not in the towns and cities, but in the bett<.'r courtry place?. If the teacher is genuinely prepared for all his Harvest ilia' strawbenies at Pasadena. duties, it is in the country or small village school that he has his best op})ortunity for leadership and financial gain. Dnirij Sc^iool No. J/6 in Harris County. (An Example of What People Can Do When They Will.) From the name of the Dairy School, it must not be inferred that dairying is the principal occupation of the people in this com- munity. Nor must it be understood that the business of dairying is taught in the school. This statement is made to prevent con- fusion as to tlie name of the district. A complete understanding and appreciation of what the Dairy people have done in an educational way is impossible without a A Study of Rural Seliools in Texas 77 knowledge of the original, physical conditions out of which this present prosperous and progressive community has evolved. In the beginning nature was not very kind to this section of the country. Though the soil was exceedingly fertile, it was very flat, and in many places covered with ponds and shallow lakes, which rendered it entirely unfit for agricultural purposes. Here the people got their first lessons in practical community co-operation, for to surmount this obstacle was not a one-man job. A drainage district of 48.4 square miles was formed, as provided for by the laws of the state, and bonds were issued against it to the amount of $60,000. In the long run, the physical disadvantages of this spot, so ill- favored by nature, has proved a blessing in disguise, for they taught the people to look at the affairs of the neighborhood in a businesslike Avay. . They have learned that the issuance of bonds is the best means of making public improvements, and that money paid for taxes judiciously applied to matters of community con- cern is money economically spent. The business lessons learned in this way made the subsequent school-improvement issue an easy one to carry, even though the taxes for local improvements were already relatively very high. That part of the Dairy school district lying within the bounds of the drainage district constitutes slightly more than one-half of it, so that Dairy property holders have to bear about one-half, or $30,000, of this bonded indebtedness for the construction of drainage ditches. The tax amounts to 80 cents on the $100 prop- erty valuation. The county rate of taxation for Harris county is $1.15. The Dairy local school tax is 50 cents. These make a total of $2.65 for local and county taxes, which is more than three times the average for such purposes in the country districts of the state. Yet when the people saw fit to bond themselves for school purposes, they did it cheerfully and unanimously, and the com- munity is still not bankrupt. In fact, the farmers are in better circumstances today than ever before. Some of the best equipped country homes in the county are in this district. For more than a generation this community was retarded by natural physical encumbrances. Not until the construction of the drainage canals did it have a fair chance. It took this to place it on an equal physical footing with some of the more fortunate 78 Bulletin of the University of Texas but less ambitious neighbor communities that might have easily surpassed it long ago in matters of industrial and educational prog- ress had they only possessed an intelligent desire to do so. At present its physical conditions are not at all unlike hundreds of districts in the state. The country is open prairie. The soil is of the black, waxy sort. The people depend upon farming al- most entirely for a living. Corn and cotton are the principal crops raised. Dairying is a minor industry and subsidiary to farming. The average physical valuation of land is about $75 per acre. The dirt roads could hardly be in a worse condition, and during periods of much rain become almost impassable. How- ever, this district will soon obtain ten or fifteen miles of good shell roads from the $1,250,000 of road bonds recently issued by the county. The people are predominately American. Fully 25 per cent of them have recently come from the east and north, and are thor- oughly imbued with progressive educational and civic ideals. Hun- dreds of Texas communities need to be shaken up with the same stimulus. They are dying of social and educational stagnation, solely for the want of an infusion of new blood. This rather general criticism is made by the writer, a thoroughbred southerner, who has spent all but four years of his life in Texas. The Dairy school district in Harris county is fifteen miles west ef the city of Houston. It just touches the Fort Bend county line. The school is making excellent progress, and may deservedly be held up to the people of Texas as an example of what the country district can do when its people are willing to co-operate vigorously. Originally the Dairy school community constituted part of a very large district which contained six small country schools. But the people were not satisfied with their inadequate school facilities, and it was proposed that the maintenance tax for school purposes be increased from ten to twenty cents. To tliis the rest of the dis- trict in general objected, and the proposed tax issue was over- whelmingly defeated in the election tliat followed. The Dairy people were not to be baffled. They were determined to provide better educational opportunities for their children. To do this some new plan of action had to be hit upon. They said among themselves, "Let us petition the commissioners' court to form the Dairy community into a new school district." It was A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 79 done. The petition was granted and the Dairy school district of approximately twenty-eight square miles was formed. With the first battle won, the second soon followed. A new school building had to be erected. Could this little corner of the one-time very large district, all unaided, do a thing the parent district had de- clined to undertake? On January 20, 1911, an election was called for the issuance of $10,000 worth of schoolhouse and equipment bonds against the new Dairy school district 'No. 46. There was just one dissenting vote. But the people soon saw that they had made a mistake. They had not voted sufficient money to finish and equip the kind of building they had planned. To correct this, bonds for $2000 more were immediately issued. This time the vote was unanimous. As a result, Dairy has a modern two-story brick school building with four well equipped classrooms; a basement with floor space sufficient for three other classrooms when the community grows populous enough to need them; and an auditorium fitted with 200 opera chairs, roller-stage curtains, footlights, dressing rooms, and a piano. The auditorium and all the classrooms are heated with hot air from a furnace in the basement. The unoccupied floor space in the basement is used for an indoor playground at present, but later it will be used for domestic science and manual training. This new school is the pride of the people and the center of the community's life. It might be well to add, parenthetically, that the parent district, of which Dairy school was formerly a part, has seen the error of its wa}^, and now has a new school building — an exact duplicate of the Dairy school. The Dairy school building stands in the center of a four-acre plot of ground. The boys have just finished constructing a track all the way around this campus for foot races, bicycles, and motor- cycles. In the rear is the baseball diamond and pole vaulting ground. To the right are the girls' basketball and volleyball courts, and to the left the boys' basketball court. In front of the building is an open lawn of more than an acre. The principal and the boys have recently set this out in native trees, and given it as much the appearance of a park as possible. It will make an ideal place for a community picnic ground, for there are no other shade trees within five miles. In this way it can he made one 80 Bulletin of the UnivcvsUy of Texas more valuable agency in getting tlie people to regard the school- house as the social center of the community. No laboratories for this school have yet been provided. Each classroom, however, is well supplied with globes, maps, charts, and hyloplate blackboards. The library consists of about 200 well selected volumes that circulate freely through the communitv. 1 Dairy School. The next piece of improvement will be tlic grading and leveling of the school grounds. This will 1)C done by work contributed by the patrons. As it is, the school ground is too fiat, and does not drain well; in rainy weather it is covered with numerous small ponds. , The policy of the school board now is to provide laboratory A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 81 apparatus for teaching the elementary sciences and to equip the large basement rooms for teaching the industrial arts. The same unselfish, neighborly spirit that prompted the people to erect the new building will soon provide a well equipped plant where the boys may have practical instruction under a competent director in the uses of saw, chisel, plane, and carpenter's square; and the girls will have the benefits of lessons in cooking, sewing, and better home-making. The school has an enrollment of one hundred and twenty-three pupils. Of these nine are doing regular high school work. The distinguishing feature of this student body is its unusually large percentage of big boys. For the month ending just prior to the time when this survey was made there was but one day's absence from school among the twenty largest boys in attendance. This ability to keep the big boys interested and in school is due in a large degree to the leadership of Mr. 0. A. Heath, the prin- cipal. Mr. Heath is twenty-six years old, and along with his academic and professional training has a practical knowledge of human nature. He understands boys, and they all like him. He is a good athlete, and is director of the interscholastic league in Harris county. At the Harris county athletic meet to be held next spring his basketball, baseball, and track teams will enter contests for a good share of the honors. Mrs. Heath and Miss Burgess are the other teachers. They are both graduates of the Sam Houston State Normal. In fact, they and Mr. Heath graduated in the same class, 1911. The three make an enviable corps of teachers, and the community very rightly feels that it has been fortunate in securing their services. They are more than mere academic instructors. They are keenly aware that not all education is tied up in the mysteries of books. They see that people have a great need for that kind of training which comes from proper social recreation. To meet this need, a series of social entertainments to be held in the school auditorium have been planned for the year. A boys' quartette has been organized, and a dramatic club is in process of formation. The story of the Dairy school would not be complete without an account of the new teacher's home. At the time of this survey, it was under construction, and had just received the first coat of paint. It is a five-room Imngalow structure built by the commu- 82 Bulletin of the University of Texas nity. The money was raised by private subscription. It is a great step toward inducing a really competent school man to come and stay in the community and be a real citizen, — a social and indus- trial leader among the people, as well as an academic instructor in the classroom. The Texas public schools can never hope to perform the whole duty they owe to society so long as the teachers are a class of transients that sojourn on an average less than two years in the same place. The spirit of the people of this community is well illustrated by the fact that a committee of representative citizens recently requested the commissioners' court to raise the valuations of prop- erty given by the county assessor in order that their school revenues might be increased. Although the present rate of taxation for school purposes is all that is permitted under the state constitu- tion, the revenue is insufficient; and in order to have the privilege of paying more school tax, the people are also willing to pay more state and county taxes. A thousand districts in Texas need to do what the Dairy school people have done. They need to spend more money for public improvements and public education. It would revolutionize the minds of the people to do so. As a rule the public should pay for all that it gets; it never fully appreciates the things that are given to it outright. The local public mind delights most in those improvements that are made out of local public revenues. The Dairy people appreciate their good school today a thousand times more than do the numerous communities whoso feeble little schools subsist entirely through the meager charity of the state. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 83 VII. THP] EURAL SCHOOLS OF BELL COUNTY. ECONOMIC AND INDUSTRIAL SITUATION. Bell county is situated in the south central part of the state. It was organized in 1850, and contains 1083 square miles. It is one of the big cotton producing counties, practically one-fifth of the total area being planted each year in cotton, on which about 60,000 bales are raised annually. The cereal crop, mainly corn, oats, and wheat, covers an area of about one-half as great as that in cotton. Since cotton is the principal money producing crop, the industrial situation and the school problems of Bell county are typical of those in the great cotton belt of central Texas. According to the 1910 census, there were 788,095 acres, repre- senting 82 per cent of the total tillable area, actually under culti- vation. This land varies in price from $60 to $150 per acre. There were 4:915 farms varying in size from three to 1000 acres or more. The number of farms decreased slightly during the pre- ceding decade. Twenty-seven farms had 1000 acres or more; 79 had from 500 to 1000 acres; 203 had from 260 to 500 acres. 1935, or 39.4 per cent, of the farms were operated by owners; 2973, or 60.5 per cent, by tenants; and seven by farm managers. Of the farms operated by owners, 1050 were free from mortgages. Ac- cording to the report of the county tax assessor to the state comp- troller, the total assessed valuation of property in the county amounts to $29,669,830. This assessed valuation represents less than one-half of the real value. In the main, the farm houses of landlords indicate an appre- ciation of the importance of home building. There is often, how- ever, a lack of conveniences caused by improper building plans. The amount of money which the landlords spend for their homes would procure much better conveniences if these homes were built accord- ing to plans drawn by competent architects. Although the tenant houses are as good as those commonly found, they are as a rule built cheaply and without regard to the tenant's health or comfort. Many of them are built upon the waste land of creeks. In many instances, the tenant house is located on less than an acre of land in the middle of a farm. The absence of playgrounds for the 84 Bulletin of the University of Texas children adds desolation to the sites selected. It is but human nature that good tenants will select the houses which provide the most homelike surroundings. Here again there is need of well selected plans. Whether for the landlord or for the tenant, the construction of convenient homes constitutes an important item of economy in farm management. The practice of collecting what is called the "bonus" is one of the pernicious features of the rental system. B}- this is meant the payment of money, varying from one to three dollars per acre annually in addition to the customary rentals of one-third and one-fourth. This practice does not extend to some communities, nor is it countenanced by many of the more thoughtful landlords. However, it seems that each year increases the number of "bonus" farms. The system is not based upon any scientific calculation, often varying in amount in the same community. Abuses fre- quently result in making the wealthy landlords Avealthier and the poor tenants poorer. INDUSTRIAL CO-OPERATION. The rank and file of the farmers with wliom the representative of the Department of Extension talked seemed not to appreciate the importance of industrial co-operation. The truth of this state- ment is evidenced by the fact that often the local farmers' union organization, once active, is now either inactive or completely dead. This IS possibly due in part to tlie fact that too many of such organi- zations were effected to give to them virility and enthusiasm, the unit of organization generally being co-ordinate with the small school community. But there are two distinct features of indus- trial co-operation that deserve special mention. The first of these is the result of the efforts of the county farm demonstrator. Through the schools he keeps constantly in touch with a large number of boys who are cultivating agricultural plots under his direction. Before a school is visited, each boy studying agriculture is asked to bring twenty of his best ears of corn to the school, where the government demonstrator makes a selection of the ten best. The reasons are explained to the class why the ten good ears are accepted and why the ten poor ones are rejected. Other services of the county farm demonstrator that deserve special men- A Stvdij of Rural Schools in Texas 85 Supeiiiiteiulfiit's dwelling, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Temple, Texas. Auditorium, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Temple, Texas. 86 Bulletin of the University of Texas tion are the Supplying of pure seed to the farmers and the deliver- ing of scientific lectures accompanied by stereopticon views. The second phase of industrial co-operation is the work of the Bell County Experiment Association. This association, with a membership of more than fifty progressive farmers, is an organi- zation to bring about a closer co-operation between the farmers and the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. As the experi- ment station determines by investigation that certain methods of culture or certain pure types of seed are best adapted to the sec- tion, these facts are carried to the farmer by the county farm demanstrator. The association has established a market bureau for pure seed. There has recently been erected an auditorium for holding community meetings. The exposition hall is not only a real social center, but it is a model of the general meeting place that should be available to the people of every community. The superintendent of the experiment station has always kept in mind the service possible for the station to render to the country schools of the county. This is indeed an opportunity for the schools of Bell county to get away from the proverbial book agriculture so often taught, and to come into contact with real field agriculture. Any school of the county would do well to spend one day, at least, in each year in visiting this farm. It would he an ideal place for the maintenance of a model rural high school at comparatively little cost. MARKET FACILITIES. Railroads. Three railroads cross the county, furnishing an adequate outlet for agricultural products. An electric railway connects Temple and Belton, the two largest towns. Other thriving railroad towns which offer competitive markets are Bartlett, Holland, Killeen, Eogers, Troy, Pendleton, and Nolanville. Practically all of these towns have cotton seed oil mills. Good Roads. No county in the state is in greater need of good roads than Bell county. The nature of the soil makes transportation impos- sible over the neglected roads during the rainy seasons. So bad A Stvdy of Rural ScJiooIs in Texas 87 were thej^ during all of December, 1913, that transportation over dirt roads was suspended. Even in the city of Temple four horses were required to pull a small delivery wagon. In the face of the fact that the farmer is the principal beneficiary of permanent roads, the majority of the farmers have been obstinately opposed to their construction by the issuance of bonds. The towns, on the contrary, have fallen in line with the progressive movement. But the good-roads sentiment is fast increasing. Good roads have been the special slogan of the commissioner from the Belton precinct. Convict labor has built about half the pike road con- necting Temple and Belton. Streets in the town of Belton are being permanently improved. The Belton district has issued $150,000 worth of bonds for permanent road improvement; the Bartlett precinct, $50,000 ; the Heidenheimer precinct, $30,000 ; the Temple precinct, $600,000. The expenditure of the money around these towns will doubtless cause the good-roads contagion to spread over the country districts. As an evidence of the com- mercial value of such improvement to the country, one farmer living on a gravel road four miles from Belton said this his road tax on the bonds for the year was only $6.90, and that he had made this back in hauling only two loads. Not to mention the possibilities for better country schools and improved social inter- course among neighbors, the commercial value of permanent roads amply justifies their construction. The criticism of the method of constructing permanent roads in Bell county is that the piecemeal system does not permit a com- prehensive planning of a network of roads for the entire county, such as would obtain if the county were the unit. The fault here lies with the system. SOCIAL CONDITIONS. Bell county is exceedingly fortunate in having a homogeneous population. According to the census of 1910, the county had a population of 49,186. Of this number 42,874 were white and 6302 negroes. Only 2013 of the white population were foreign born ; 37,025 had native parentage. The number of illiterate voters was 5.6 per cent. There were 9670 families, of whom approxi- mately two-thirds reside in the rural districts. The condition of the roads, already mentioned, has had the 88 Bulletin of the University of Texas effect of retarding soc-ial communication. The money now avail- able will probably complete 150 miles of permanent road; but for the reason that this improvement is centered about the larger towns, many of the country communities will receive small benefit from them. Practically every community has telephone service. In some communities 75 per cent of the homes have telephone connections; on an average, probably one-third of the country homes have such service. Twenty-eight lines of rural free mail delivei-y connect 90 per cent of the families with what is going on in the world. The people are unanimous in their praise of this form of government service. In general, there is a lack of activity on the part of organiza- tions which have for their object the promotion of social welfare. The "Woodmen of the AYorld and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows are the most active fraternal orders. About ten commu- nities liave debating or literary societies which meet regularly. Only one rural school has taken part in the interscholastic league contests. Through the efforts of the county superintendent, active mothers' clubs are maintained at Prairie Dell, Little Kiver, Brook- haven, and Heidenheiraer. Mention is made elsewhere of the boys' corn club work. Xo active organization of girls' clubs has been formed. Probably one-third of the country schools have some form of athletic activities directed by the teachers, but there is a lack of close organization and supervision. The principal games are basketball and baseball. The people of the county are unusually friendly and cordial, possessing all tlie essential qualifications for a virile and happy citizenship. The young people if properly directed are gifted with sufficient talent to provide a wholesome social life. All that is needed is leadership. The liox supper given at Pendleton on the evening of January 17, 1914, furnishes an excellent example of what may be done by teachers in this respect. Preceding the box supper, the county farm demonstrator gave a stereopticon lecture on Burbank, the machine and slides having been furnished by the Department of Extension of the University of Texas. This was followed by two or three short talks. Then the boxes were sold, netting the school about $-1:0. The' evening was one of pleasure and profit to both patrons and pupils, and gave the teach- ers an excellent opportunity to strengthen the school through the A Studij of Rural Schools in Texas 89 right direction of innate social tendencies. By a little work, and much less ingeunity, any teacher could direct social meetings of this kind in his community. In almost every community of Bell county there is ample evidence of the good that could he accom- plished l)y the teacher hy a ivider social utilization of the school plant. Churches. The problems confronting the churches of Bell county are not unlike those mentioned in the general discussion of country churches elsewhere in this bulletin. The pastors with whom the representative talked were cordial and co-operative. Church activi- ties in the country are limited principally to three denominations. All ministers with whom the matter ivas discussed were convinced that the procuring of competent pastors was the biggest problem confronting the country church. The demand is growing less each year for the "clophopper" preacher who plows six days in the week and preaches one day. But even this system cannot be much worse than the absentee pastor who visits and preaches in the community once or twice per month. Eighteen country pastors at one time resided in the same town and were members of the same town church. x\.nother denomination had a number of country church organizations, not a single one of which had a pastor. One-iifth of the churches of one denomination had preaching twice per month, the other four-fifths once per month. The country preacher who devotes all his time to pastoral work, which is often scattered over several communities remote from each other, receives on an average approximately $600 per year — about one-third the wages of an average bricklayer. // the country church is to live and groiv, it must pay living salaries to its ministers, and prescribe to each a limited field of work, the performance of which will not require the luorking of miracles. This will call for a systematic division of the county into appropriate units by some regularly constituted church authority. It will also call for co-operation and concessions on the part of the several denominations. An examination of the records of twenty-four rural churches of one denomination showed that fifteen had gained and nine lost in membership during the preceding year. Eight of them had fewer 90 Bulletin of the University of Texas than fifty members. Sixteen maintained Sunday schools and six- teen owned their church buildings. Most of the church buildings are small, seating from two to three hundred. Many of them are not properly cared for. It is not uncommon to find neglected yards, doors standing open, build- ings in need of paint. One minister reported that in a church at which he filled an appointment he found an old hen sitting tranquilly on a full nest of eggs. These facts emphasize the im- portance of resident pastors who should be the custodians of church property. The church building should he made and kept attrac- tive, receiving as much care as is ordinarily given private property. Salvation and sanitation are not total strangers to each other. Many of the churches have introduced young people's organiza- tions, as auxiliary activities to the church; but there is need of more planning and direction of social life by the church for the young people. This is another illustration of the necessity for resident pastors. What is said here is not intended to reflec!, upon anyone; nor does the writer fail to appreciate the self-sacrificing, God-fearing, overworked, and poorly paid ministers of the country churches. EDUCATIONAL STx\.TDS AND TENDENCIES. Instruction. The teachers of Bell county are intelligent and progressive. Ac- cording to the report of the county superintendent for 1913, there were 29 white male teachers and 112 female teachers in the coun- try districts, a total of 141. Seventy-nine were holders of second grade certificates, 55 of first grade certificates, and 7 of perma- nent or permanent primary certificates; 54 were graduated from high schools, 19 from normal schools, 8 from colleges or uni- versities, and 60 were graduated from no schools. Growth in efficiency is indicated by the increase from 38 teachers with first grade certificates last year to 55 this year, a gain of 47 per cent. This was one of the effects of the Rural High School Law, which prohibits the holder of a second grade certificate from teaching high school subjects. But in spite of this progress, the efficiency of the country schools, as indicated by the credentials of the teachers, falls far short of the town schools in the same county. For example, in the public schools of Temple for the same year, A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 91 not a teacher held a second grade certificate; 24 held first grade certificates, and 32 permanent or permanent primary certificates. Further, 24 were graduated from high schools, 11 from normal schools, and 15 from colleges or universities. This is only one of the v.'ays of comparing the opportunity of the country child in Bell county with that of the child residing in Temple, in the same county. After all else is considered, it remains true that the de- gree of efficiency attained by the school depends largely on the employment of professionally trained teachers. The country chil- dren are entitled to better trained teachers. Then there is the teacher's salary. The average annual salary of the country teacher of Bell county is $335; the average salary per month, $59.82. For the teachers of the city of Temple, these two items ' are, respectively, $718.43 and $79.82. The country scliools doubtless get about what they pay for. Whether on the farm, in the store, or in the schoolroom, it is a principle of busi- ness economy that successful administration always requires the employment of efficient helpers, which in turn necessitates an ade- quate remuneration for services rendered. This does not mean that money must be squandered. The maintenance of efficient country schools in Bell county will require the expenditure of more money for ieiter teachers. Good teaching is essential; but it is not more essential than the selection of the matter to be taught. As far as the observation of ihp present writer extended, the teaching of agriculture was limited to book theory. None of the schools visited had an experi- mental farm, or a manual training shop, or a domestic economy department. Contrast this with the fact that the city schools of Temple offer instruction in typewriting, bookkeeping, and domestic economy. The most serious defect in the country schools was the omission of the practical subjects from the curriculum. The fol- lowing additional comparisons of the country schools of Bell county with the schools of Temple are made for the purpose of showing the inequality in the opportunities given different children in the same county: 93 Bulletin of the University of Texas A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 93 Other Comparisons of White Schools. Bell County Rural City of Temple Schools. Schools. Length of school term 112 clays 180 days A^alue of school property per child $17.94 $95.10 Annual maintenance expenditure per child $8.54 $21.63 Per cent scholastics present each day ... . 53 71 Per cent scholastics absent each day .... 47 29 These figures represent with reasonable accuracy similar com- parisons of other growing town schools with the contiguous coun- try schools. Is the country child given a square deal? Do these figures sound like democracy or discrimination? Is there any justification for permitting country schools to continue monuments of wasted opportunity? Tenure of Office of Teachers. A marked potential improvement in the rural schools of Bell county lies in the increase of the number of teachers from year to year. With respect to the tenure of office at the close of the pres- ent school year, the following facts are given: 47 teachers have taught the same schools for two successive terms or more (14 of these for three consecutive terms) ; 30 changed from one school to another in the county; 101 were new in the county. Two con- clusions are deducible from these facts: first, a slightly smaller percentage of teachers changed at the end of the first and the sec- ond years in Bell county than in the state at large; second, the percentage of teachers new to the county is large. Other counties have done worse in this respect ; but no business, public or private, which shifts 18 per cent of its employes and completely changes 57 per cent of its employes at the end of each year can attain even a medium degree of efficiency. The school can well learn a lesson from the commercial world. The country schools of Bell county need less changing of teachers from year to year. 94 Bulletin of the University of Texas School Districts and Consolidation. Of the 98 country schools in Bell county, 62 are one-teacher schools, 29 are two-teacher schools, and 7 employ three teachers or more. There are 98 districts with an average area of about ten square miles. Thirty-eight districts have an area of less than six square miles, and 35 other districts have an area of less than eight square miles. There is no official map which defines accu- rately the boundaries of the several districts, and the records cre- ating or changing them are scattered over several thousand pages of commissioners' court minutes covering the past forty years. The experience of other counties shows that inaccurate boundary lines cause the country schools to lose annually from two hundred to two thousand dollars in the collection of special taxes. Within a few years the country schools would recover several times the amount of money that would be necessary to clarify the records and make an official map of the school districts. An official map, defining district boundary lines, should he prepared. The formation of so many districts is a natural consequence of the speedy development of pioneer settlements into a populous, organized county unit. Most of this occurred before the attention of school authorities was called to the evil effects of decentraliza- tion upon school affairs. While the blame rests upon no one, conditions are such that the consolidation of districts is the only guarantee of the possibility of good schools for the country chil- dren of Bell county. The benefits to be derived from consolida- tion are mentioned elsewhere, and the principles there discussed are applicable to conditions in this county. Bad roads are the greatest obstacles, but even these should not stand in the way, because attendance for a shorter time upon a consolidated school would be of greater value to the pupils than attendance for a longer time upon a small school under the best conditions. Besides, the con- solidation of schools will do much to hasten the construction of good roads. Below is a drawing of three districts in Bell county where con- solidation would be both practicable and desirable. These districts last year had a census enumeration oi 138, receiving $842.55 from the state and $622.11 from local taxes. This amount of money would easily employ two good teachers for a term of eight months, A Stndy of Rural Schools in Texas 95 96 Bulletin of the University of Texas whereas the average term now is less than six months. At least two additional grades could be added, and the whole school taught more efficiently than at present. An additional 5 cent tax would make possible the employment of a third teacher. A tax of 25 cents would provide for the issuance of bonds to the amount of $8500 for the erection of a schoolhouse. By this small additional expenditure, the school would easily double its efficiency; but even the expenditure of only the amount of money it now spends on the three schools would make an infinitely better school under the consolidation plan. If transportation were added, this consolida- tion could include profitably even more territory than these three small districts. This is only one example of many where consolidation would be desirable. It is worthy of comment that the county superintendent appreciates these needs, and that five consolidations have been made within the past two years. Since the issuance of schoolhouse bonds establishes the boundary lines of a school district for an indefinite period, the issuance of bonds by any district would not be advisable unless the district includes the proper amount of territory. There are many small schools which must be abandoned if an efficient system of education is maintained. Bell county needs to he re- districted with a view to effecting consolidations wherever prac- iicdble, due consideration being given to districts already formed. Physical Features of the Schools. Eighty-nine of the country schools have frame buildings and nine have brick or stone buildings. The county superintendent reports 32 of these schoolhouses in good condition and 17 in bad condition. In one of the best brick houses improper drainage had permitted water to undermine the foundation and crack the walls ; the expenditure of only a few dollars would have prevented the costly accident. A majority of the schools do not have sufficient grounds for well organized play. In several of the schools there were evidences of tree planting and yard improvement. The con- dition of outhouses was unsatisfactory, both in sanitation and in appearance. The outhouses should he screened and provided with septic tanks. The moral cost of bad closets is incalculable. The expenditure of ten or fifteen dollars in each instance is a small A Shnhi of Tiiirn] Sclionlsi in Texas 97 98 Bulletin of the Universltij of Texas consideration when compared with the cost of disease incident to unsanitary closets. Simijle plans may be obtained free from Sur- geon General Eupert Blue, Washington, D. C. The rooms of the new buildings are provided with modern systems of heating and ventilation, an example that should be followed by all the schools. More than nine-tenths of the schoolrooms are seated with either single or double desks — a comparatively good record in this re- spect. A few drinking fountains have been installed. Fifteen schools have purchased libraries aggregating about 1800 books, and the interest in libraries is growing. Local Taxation. As a rule, public school sentiment in a county or community may be measured by the extent of local taxation. Eecognition of the necessity for local taxes is becoming general among the people. Even the politician's boastful allusions to our "magnificent per- manent school fund" have ceased to be popular or to hoodwink the people. Though late in making the start. Bell county has caught the spirit. More progress has been made in this direction during the incumbency of the present county superintendent than in any previous administration. The following facts about the 98 country school districts speak for themselves : 65 districts levy a local tax. 3 districts levy the maximum of 50 cents. 7 districts levy 40 cents or more. 22 districts levy 25 cents or more. 32 districts levy 20 cents or more. 19 districts levy 10 cents. 4 districts levy less than 10 cents. 10 districts voted a tax during the year 1913. 2 districts voted an additional tax in 1913. 1 district voted off its tax in 1913. $17,120 is collected annually from local taxes. 8choolhouse Bonds. Another manifestation of progress is the erection of good school- houses by the issuance of bonds. Much that has been done in this respect was under the leadership and at the instigation of the A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 99 present county superintendent. Within the past three years $83,500 has been expended in tlie construction of twelve country schoolhouses. The following are the districts that have erected the most substantial schoolhouses : Little Elver, seven miles south of Temple; the Academy, ten miles southeast of Temple; Joe Lee, five miles west of Eogers ; Little Flock, four miles east of Temple ; Wiltonville, four miles west of Belton; Prairie Dell, fifteen miles southwest of Belton; Willow Grove, a county line district on the north. Practically all of them are modern buildings, the plans of which were furnished by the county superintendent, who exer- cises discretion and diligence in the approval of warrants drawn upon building funds. Governing Boards. It is physically impossible for the county superintendent to keep constantly in touch with one hundred local boards of trustees, which comprise more than three hundred members. The fact, however, that 60 per cent of the boards confer with the county superintendent in the election of teachers is a credit to their intel- ligence. One of the most useful organizations is the County Trus- tees' Association. The organization, effected in 1911, holds in the months of May and November each year a session of two days. School problems, such as sanitation, interior and ground improve- ment, and the classification of schools, are discussed. Trustees participate spiritedly in the discussions, relating what has been accomplished in their respective communities. Their interest is evidenced by the fact that the attendance upon each session aver- ages one hundred. The Trustees' Association and its work de- serve special commendation. The county board keeps in close touch with the local trustees by the issuance of short bulletins twice during each year. As a result no confusion has arisen in the classification of the schools as required by the Eural High School Law, and the local trustees have accordingly given their assistance in this important work. The county board has directed the county superintendent to fur- nish examination questions to all pupils completing the primary and the intermediate grades. Approximately one hundred pupils are transferred annually for high school purposes. In making 100 Bulletin of tlie University of Texas transfers for liigli school purposes, it has been the custom of the county hoard to transfer only state and county funds. As a mat- ter of fact, the cost of maintaining the several grades of school work varies, increasing with the advanced grades. For this reason the county board should, as a rule, transfer more than is appor- tioned to the pupil from the state and county funds. The cost per high school pupil should he determined in each individual case, and this should govern the amount of funds transferred. The commissioners' court is generally considerate of the recommenda- tions made by the county board. The County Superintendent's Office. Bell county was one of the first to see the need for the office of county superintendent of public instruction. As a consequence, the office was created by an act of the commissioners' court in 1886. During the twenty-eight years the county has had eight county superintendents. The following list shows the name and the length of service of each: T. J. Witt, 4 years. F. C. Humphries, 2 years. W. C. Halbert, 2 years. Forrest Smith, 2 years. W. W. Higgins, 4 years. H. K. Orgain, 6 years. J. W. Grissom, 4 years. J. S. Morgan, 4 years. In most instances the office was obtained as a result of a political scramble. The average length of time served by the county super- intendent was a little more than three years, a time entirely too short to allow him to become familiar with the conditions and accomplish any extensive constructive work. The facts show that some of tlie county superintendents had opponents at the close of the first elective term, and that all of them who offered for re- election liad opponents at the close of the second term. Only one served for more than four years. It is a matter of common knowl- edge that a county superintendent's best work is possible after the fourth or sixth year in office. Although the county has, in the main, elected efficient superintendents, the facts above given show A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 101 conclusively the effects of local politics. The interest of the coun- try schools demand that the office of county superintendent shall he removed from factional politics so as to secure competent men and guarantee them permanency of position. The ofSce of county superintendent in this county has done much constructive work. The county teachers' institute deserves special mention. According to the plan now in use, the institute is divided into sections of from twenty to twenty-five members for the pur- pose of studying a textbook selected by the county superintendent. At another period the institute is divided into sections, which in- clude, respectively, primary, intermediate, and high school teach- ers; and at still another period, the county superintendent and the several city superintendents meet with their respective teachers. A professional library of one hundred and fifty books has been purchased, and there are additional funds to increase the number of volumes. At the last county institute the teachers defrayed the expenses of procuring the services of several expert lecturers. There has been organized a story-tellers' league, which meets twice each year. At the first meeting there were sixty-five teach- ers and more than five hundred citizens present. The interest in these meetings has stirred enthusiasm on the part of both teachers and parents. The county superintendent has held as many local institutes as his time would permit. A larger number of local institutes held throughout the year ivould doubtless prove bene- ficial. The present county superintendent manifests a personal pride and interest in advising with the teachers, trustees, and patrons. He addresses the teachers as often as possible. The support which the people have given him in the erection of new schoolhouses is an example of the confidence they have in him. The county superintendent is at present handicapped by the large amount of clerical work. For example, the following work which could be done by a clerk employed at fifty or sixty dollars per month requires much of the best time and vitality of the county superintendent, who should be freed from it that he might devote his entire attention to the larger school problems of the county: (1) Writmg from 2500 to 3000 letters annually; (2) bookkeeping, involving a yearly expenditure of $75,000 for 108 school districts; (3) auditing annually nearly 1000 teachers' re- ports; (4) distribution of census blanks to 100 districts, and prep- 102 Bulletin of the University of Texas aration of census reports; (5) filing of lists of trustees, recording teachers' certificates, issuing circular letters and numerous other official data; (6) distribution of blanks and office supplies, such as teachers' report blanks, registers, building permits, trustees' oaths, notices of election, and bond records; (7) the performance of much other detail work too minute to mention. It is a principle of sound hiLsiness economy that expensive labor must perform expert service, and for this reason money would he saved to the country schools hy the employment of clerical assistance for the county ■superintendent. . Summary and Recommendations. The Texas Experiment Station would he an ideal place for the maintenance of a model rural high school at comparatively little cost. Not to mention the possibilities of better country schools and improved social intercourse among neighbors, the commercial value of permanent roads amply justifies their construction. In almost every community there is ample evidence 'of the good that could he accomplished hy the teacher in directing social life. The procuring of competent pastors is the biggest problem of the country church in Bell county. Living salaries are not at present paid to ministers. Church buildings should he made more attractive. The maintenance of cedent country schools in Bell county will require the expenditure of more money for better teachers. The consolidation of districts is the only guarantee of the pos- sibility of good schools for the country children of Bell county. For this purpose the county needs redistricting. An official map, defining district boundary lines, should be prepared. Outhouses should he screened and provided with septic tanks. Local school tax sentiment has shown a marvelous growth dur- ing the past feiv years. The office of county superintendent should he removed from factional politics. The county superintendent is overloaded with clerical work that should he done hy an assistant. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 103 A larger niunher of local institutes ivould prove beneficial. Very little industrial ivork is done in the schools. Such in- struction is not possible to any great extent until larger districts are obtained by means of consolidation. THE WILLOW GROVE SCHOOL. The organization of the Willow Grove school, a consolidated school on the northern boundar)^ of Bell county, is an illustration of the principle that common sense and hard work are more val- uable assets to a community than genius. It is a simple story of how an efficient county superintendent pointed out the way, and the people, recognizing the value of education, put aside the local prejudices that often misgTiide the actions of men, and co-oper- atively followed his advice. The present district was originally three small districts, each of which maintained, with an inexperi- enced teacher, a poorly kept school in a more poorly kept building for four months during the year. The conversion of these poor schools into one good school, maintained in a modern brick build- ing for eight months in the year, and employing well trained teachers, makes this event the beginning of a new era in public education for the country schools of Bell county. Consolidation of the Prairie Hill, Bound Top, and old Willow Grove schools was effected in the summer of 1913, and the school employed only one teacher for the year 1913-13, paying $75 per month for seven months. After the technical and legal require- ments with respect to the creation of the district were met, a bond election for the erection of an $8000 school building was carried in 1913 by a vote of 38 to 11. A maintenance tax of 35 cents, making a total school tax of 47 cents on the $100 valuation of property, was voted by practically the same majority. The build- ing was completed and became the home of the school in Jan- uary, 1914. The consolidated district, comprising about fourteen square miles, is situated in the black land farming belt. The assessed valuation of property is $350,808.50. Cotton is the principal crop. Ninety-five per cent of the land is in cultivation. The average size of the farms is 93 acres. The price of land ranges from $110 to $150 per acre. Seventy-seven families, of whom 31 are home 104 Bill lei in of llw Univcrsilij of Tc.ias A Study of Rural Schools i/i Texas 105 owners and 46 are tenants, reside in the district. There are no foreigners, and only an occasional family of negroes. The school building has an ideal location on an attractive prom- inence in the center of the district at the crossing of two public roads. The board of trustees displayed intelligent business judg- ment by purchasing six acres of ground. Pictures on the opposite page show the three abandoned buildings (one of Avhich was par- tially torn away at the time the survey was made) , and also the in- complete brick building which supplanted them. This str^icture is justly the pride of the com.munity. There are two classrooms and a music room on the first floor, and a cosnmodious auditorium on the second. Each room is seated with single desks and a teacher's desk, is heated with a modern ventilating stove, and provided with good hyloplate blackboards, Another commendable feature of this school is the principal's home, which is situated on the school grounds. This house, to- gether Avith a garden, is the property of the school, and is furnished without cost to the teacher. One of the old school buildings was remodeled for this purpose. The wisdom of this investment will not be questioned by those who have made investigations. Aside from the question of convenience and from the fact that such a plan enables the teacher to become the custodian of all school property, the teacher is relieved of the embarrassment of being unable to rent a satisfactory home near the school. Prior to the completion of this home, the teacher's family was compelled to live in a dilapidated two-room hut, situated in the middle of a field. Aside from the fact that the old house was uncomfortable and insanitar}^, its occupation was not in keeping with the dignity of a teachers position in the community, nor did it permit the teacher and his family to render the community that social service which should be expected from them. The principal, a man thirty-five years of age, possesses tact, per- sonality, and leadership. The vim and snap which entered into the recitations showed clearly that his heart was in his work. Whether teaching a class or leading the songs for the school, it was easy to discern that he was the recognized leader in the school- room and out. It was his direct personal infiuence that accounted for the large number of older pupils in this school. The salary of the principal is $100 per month for eight months. 106 Bulletin of the University of Texas While conditions now are infinitely better than under the old plan before the consolidation was made, the Willow Grove school could be much improved hj a small additional investment. There should le a lihranj, an agricultural plot, a drinhing fountain, phys- ical apparatus for teaching natural science, playground equipment, and sanitary outhouses. A literary society should he organized. The course of study for the school should include experimental agriculture for the hoys and domestic economy for the girls. And an additional teacher is needed. It is recommended that the board of trustees and the teachers seek to make these improvements at the earliest possible moment. The necessity for good equipment is comprehensively discussed in many bulletins, and for this reason the present discussion will not go into the details of a question over which there is no division of opinion. Conditions with respect to the church are about as they usually are in country communities. The observations recorded elsewhere in this bulletin are applicable in a large measure to the churches of Willow Grove. The community has two organized churches of different denominations; one has a membership of sixtj'-five, the other of eighty-five. Each maintains a Sunday school. One owns its church building, the other occupies a temporary building. Each employs a pastor for one Sunday in the month, and the pastor in each case does not live in the community. The salary paid to each is $150 per year. Neither of the churches has any young people's organization other than the Sunday school. Perhaps these churches are doing as much as could, be expected under present conditions. The pastors are intelligent and devout men. But this community would he infinitely more religious if there were a consolidation of churches, just as there have heen a consolidation of schools, so as to make possible the employment of- a pastor for his full time, or at least for half of his time. The church and the school should be the most potent factors in providing a wholesome social life for the young people in this community. Their entertainment now is limited to the occasional singing of sacred songs and to the "play parties." The latter name means a rather respectable courting arrangement in which intelligence does not always predominate. No one can blame the young people — they are only following nat- ural instincts. The church and the school should make it their business to substitute something more intelligent and profitable. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 107 When all conditions are considered, the people of Willow Grove community are to be congratulated for the progress they have made educationally; and these facts are here given for the benefit of other communities. The present school should be made better each year. Money spent in the maintenance of the school should be considered an investment rather than a tax. The entire commu- nity should not forget the obligations it owes to former citizens. Upon this point, the following is an interesting extract from a letter received by the county superintendent soon after this survey was made: "There could be an interesting collection of incidents gathered from the old timers. Aaron Abbott secured a section of land, trading for same an old wagon, a span of mustang ponies, and a pair of boots. He gave the lot upon which the Willow Grove house was built (the old Willow Grove school). He also helped to haul the lumber to build the house when the coupling pole of his wagon broke, causing the team to run away and in some way he became entangled in the harness and lost his life. While read- ing the article mentioned, realizing the wonderful development, especially along educational lines, the mind runs back to the time when the old men of today were boys and the question naturally forces itself: Do the boys and girls of today realize and appre- ciate the sacrifices made for them by their grandparents? Mr. Abbott had a large family, but he realized the importance of edu- cation, spending his money, giving his land, and even his life in the great cause which is now a living monument to his memory. If they are using the house he assisted in building for the teacher's home, it has been dedicated to a good purpose." PRAIRIE DELL SCHOOL. One of the best country schoolhouses in Bell county is that re- cently built by the Prairie Dell community, a district located about fifteen miles southwest of Belton. It is the culmination of a move- ment begun by a few public-spirited citizens, some of whom are among the largest property holders in the district. A conference was held with the county superintendent, and it was decided to hold a mass meeting of citizens to determine what should be done. The county superintendent was present at the mass meeting, mak- 108 Bulletin of the University of Texas ing an educational address in wliicli he recommended the issuance of bonds in a sufficient amount to guarantee the construction of a permanent building. The meeting decided unanimously to peti- tion the commissioners' court for an election. The election authorized by a practically unanimous vote the issuance of $5000 worth of schoolhouse bonds. And in the fall of 1913 another dilapidated country schoolhouse was supplanted by a modern brick building. It has two rooms 23x30 feet and one 23x60 feet, the last being used both as a schoolroom and as an audi- torium. Each room is provided with blackboards, cloakrooms, and a modern system of heating and ventilation. The three rooms are equipped with teachers' desks, and 175 single desks for the pupils. The school owns three and one-half acres of ground. A twenty- five cent tax is required to provide for the interest and sinking fund of the bonds. In addition the people have recently voted a maintenance tax of ten cents. There are three teachers, all of whom are experienced. Their salaries are $75, $55, and $55 per month for six months. The character of service rendered by each is excellent. The principal has had three years training in the University. Two of the teach- ers have been in the school two years. The principal directs per- sonally the athletic activities of the boys, the school having one of the best baseball teams among the country schools of Bell county. No one of the teachers resides permanently in the district. The salaries paid by this school are inadequate to retain good teachers. Prairie Dell school has a scholastic enumeration of 131: pupils. Last year eighteen pupils were transferred into the district and two were transferred out of it. The school during the year 1913- 1914 enrolled 145 pupils. The fact that twelve boys over seven- teen years of age enrolled in the school deserves special mention, since pupils of this age ordinarily drop out of country schools. Many of the larger pupils work at odd times for their board. The per cent of average daily attendance to enrollment in 1913-14 was 76.5. This excellent record is doubtless due to the whole- some environment of the new school building. About four-fifths- of the land of the Prairie Dell district is in cultivation, and ranges in value from $75 to $150 per acre. Property in the dis- trict has an assessed valuation of $211,600. It is a typical agri- cultural section. There are eighty families, of whom 30 per cent A Stud'i/ of Fural Schools In Texas 109 The Old Prairie Dell School. The New Prairik Dell School. 110 Bulletin of the University of Texas own and operate their farms, and 70 per cent are tenants. Those owning their homes generally have good improvements, many of them having windmills and systems of waterworks in their dwell- ings. Tenant houses have fewer conveniences. There are no land- lords who collect "bonus" rents. The area of the Prairie Dell district is only nine square miles; it is very unfortunate that this district does not include other smaller schools located within three or four miles of it. Eighty-five per cent of the people of the district get their mail over rural routes. A local telephone system accommodates 87 per cent of the homes. There are two local fraternal lodges, one hav- ing a membership of seventy-two, the other thirty-five. An active woman's club has been organized by the teachers, assisted by the county superintendent. The community has two organized churches, each of which holds regular services once a month. But neither pastor resides in the community. Social activities of the young people are limited and the churches have here an oppor- tunity for performing a distinct religious service. The county farm demonstrator has organized a hoys' corn club, this work being done through the school with the aid of the teachers. Literary societies should be organized in the school, and there should be a greater utilization of the school plant for social service. The school needs a library, a laboratory for the teaching of elementary science, 7naps, and drinhing fountains. Attention should be given to the construction of sanitary outhouses, and, above all, the course of study of the public school should be better adjusted to the. local needs of the community. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas HI VIII. THE EUEAL SCHOOLS OF COLLIN COUNTY. Collin county is in the northern part of Texas between the cities of Dallas and Sherman. Its area is 828 square miles. It lies entirely within the black land belt, and in soil is one of the richest counties in the state. Most of the land is now in cultivation, and varies in price from $50 to $150 per acre. Agriculture is the chief occupation. Corn, cotton, and small grain are the principal crops. More cotton and corn are being planted now than a few years ago. Profitable hay farms are quite numerous, and alfalfa is beginning to attract some attention as a forage crop. Possibly there is no section of the state that can boast of better farm stock than Collin county. Efforts to improve all kinds of stock were begun at an early day and practically all the native varieties have been displaced by better blood. Good breeds of draft stock, driving stock, dairy cattle, hogs, and chickens are to be found in connection with most of the farm homes. Collin county is well supplied with railroad facilities. It is served by the Frisco, the Houston & Texas Central, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas railways, and the Dallas- Sherman interurban line. The principal railroad towns are Anna, Allen, McKinney, Frisco, Prosper, Princeton, Piano, Farmersville, and Melissa. These places vary in population from 600 to 7000 people. As for the country roads, they could hardly be worse. The soil is very waxy, and makes 'the worst sort of mud. "With a heavy rain and a little traffic the rich, soft earth of the roadbeds is quickly worked up into miles of the most dreadful quagmire. There are but six miles of pike road in the county, and one mile of that was built by private capital. But the spirit of public enter- prise among the people is improving; and recently there has been a great awakening, and much public discussion as to the best means of providing for the permanent improvement of country roads. One good-roads district has been formed, and bonds voted to the amount of $450,000. Other road bond elections are now pending in the county, and the likelihood is that they will carry by good majorities. However, for fear of defeat, good roads campaigns are beina: vigorouslv waged in all these localities. 112 Bulletin of the University of Texas In Collin county, as elsewhere, there are a few people who are constitutionally opposed to progress of any sort. It is a current anecdote in the town of McKinney that on the day of the recent road bond election a farmer drove in on the paved square and paid a negro 50 cents to clean the mud off of his wagon wheels, and immediately went and cast his vote against good roads. Three other men who live almost five miles in the country hitched four strong mules to a wagon so as to pull through the mud and reg- ister their votes against the road bonds. One fellow who was bitterly opposed to any increase in his taxes, it is said, had taxable property to the extent of one white English bull-dog and a cheap Elgin watch. Such blindly improvident men are to be met every- where, and their votes and influence have to be overcome; but, fortunately, the progressive, public spirited minds are in the ma- jority in most places. Possibly there is no place in the state where the dreadful con- dition of the country roads has been more disastrous in its effects on the rural schools. But what is true for Collin county in this respect is true in the main for most of the counties in the black land belt. Because of the condition of the country roads, more than any other one thing, the schools outside of the towns and villages are small, isolated, poorly equipped, and poorly attended. Influence of Physical and Economic Conditions. But for a complete understanding of the rural situation in Collin county due consideration must be given to some slight physical and economic variations that obtain. Eoughly speaking, the county is divided into two almost equal parts, the line of divi- sion running almost north and south very nearly through the mid- dle of it. The western side was originally open prairie coimtry, and the eastern side timber land. Many large farms, now oper- ated principally by tenants, are characteristic of the western side; while to the east are many small holdings operated by their own- ers, though they are quite commonly under mortgage. The prairie country was settled first. The original settlers were the best blood of the South that remained after the Civil War. They got the land cheap, and found the growing of small grain very profitable. Many of them prospered, grew wealthy, and later moved to town A Study of Rural *SV7too/,s in 'Texas 113 to live iu ease. Tlie egress of the land owners is causing a cor- responding ingress of tenants and the graduual displacement of the large fields of small grain by many small fields of corn and ■cotton. Reapers and threshers are giving away to one-row cnlti- vators and "middle-busters" as the number of tenants increases. The timber lands to the east, though very fertile, were more difficult to adapt to agricultural uses, and consequently were not settled until a later day. The farms are small, ranging from forty to eighty acres, as a rule, and are planted for the most part in corn and cotton. The farm houses on the average are not as good as those of the wealthier landlords on the large grain farms of the prairie country. But throughout the county, the farms oper- ated by their owners have much better homes and more conveni- ences than those leased to tenants. These physical and economic differences are in part, no doubt, responsible for certain differences in the schools of the two sections of the county. The larger original farm units in the prairie region seem to have been productive of larger neighborhood units and ultimately of larger school districts than in the smaller farms of the timbered section. It is also quite probable that the roads have had a great deal to do in determining the size of the school ■districts, for in that part of the country where travel is most diffi- cult the districts are smallest. In the western half of the county, where the country is open and level, there are twenty-five common school districts with an average area of fifteen and one-half square miles. In the eastern half there are numerous small creeks, and the roads are obliged to cross many valleys and bottoms, where they become well nigh impassable during the rainy seasons. This sec- tion has ninety-two common school districts, with an average area •of only 3.2 square miles. In the western section, with its greater number of tenant farm- ers and absentee landlords, 44 per cent of the common school dis- tricts have no local maintenance tax; while in the eastern half, where the farms are smaller and customarily operated by their o\vners, all but 9.8 per cent of the school districts have voted a local tax. To just what extent the indifference and the financial inability of the tenant farmers, and the adverse attitude of the landlords toward the contributing of their means for the support 114 Bulletin of the University of Texas of public education are respousible for this condition, it was im- possible to determine with any degree of accuracy. In this connection it is quite interesting to note that 34 per cent of the districts, where the tenant population is greatest, voted a special tax during the year preceding the time of this study. For the stimulus prompting this forward step the zeal of tlie county superintendent is in the main responsible. But the encourage- ment of public education is coming to be a popular thing, and at least a few landlords who were at one time indifferent, and some others who were openly opposed to the payment of taxes for the educating of other people's children, are now encouraging their tenants to vote affirmatively on all issues for better public schools. The tenants are also, with the possible exception of most of that class who never stay at one place long enough to become fully identified with local school and church interests, gradually coming to see that it is to their advantage to cast their lot and influence . for better schools. Farm Tenancy. Collin county has no more serious problem to face today than that of farm tenancy. It is lowering the standard of the home, the country church, and the country school. On the day this survey was begun, February 3, 1914, a teacher came into the county superintendent's office, and when asked how he was getting along with his school work, replied: "Well, I think we are doing a little better now, but I tell you our work has been anything but satisfactory for the past month. The trouble is, all my patrons are tenants and most of them moved Christmas. We were doing very nicely up to that time, but now I have only two children that were in school before the holidays. It has taken me a month to get properly acquainted with my new crowd." The percentage of home ownership is usually a very good standard for measuring the educational and civic interests of any community. What the pub- lic schools of the entire black land belt need more than any other one thing is more people to sticlc to the land as their permanent homes. Farm tenancy, poor farming, squalid homes, and inferior schools arc mutual associates. In Collin county you find a combination of the richest soil and the poorest cultivation in the state. Though much of the land is A Study of Rural Schools in Texas * 115 rolling and the soil is rapidly being washed away, not a terraced field was seen in the course of this entire investigation. During twelve days of travel over the county, 314 cases of burning the old stalks off of the ground in preparation for a new crop were counted. Thus the county is being depleted of its fertility. But who can blame the tenant for not undertaking what the owner of the land is unwilling to do? He must squeeze the soil for all that it is worth, and get out of it all that he possibly can in dollars and cents. "The farm must suffer at the hands of each while it supports them both." Where the landowner has moved to town and left a well im- proved country home, some fortunate tenant gets the benefit of it with all its conveniences; but in most cases the condition of the tenant's liome is but little short of wretched. A large family crowded together in a small house devoid of all the comforts of a real home is no uncommon thing. Beauty and convenience are things unknown to the vast majority of the poorer class of tenants. Poverty and squalor are in evidence on every country roadside. Just whose is the fault? "The sorry tenant's," said a wealthy landlord; "they don't try." Then he went on to tell how many of them did not have a milk cow or a garden spot or even a chicken ; and contended that all these things might be had if they would only try, and that there was no use for them to live out of tin cans and paper sacks from the nearest grocery store, as many of them do. Continuing, he cited a few cases of prosperous tenant farmers who had saved money and paid for their homes during the past ten or fifteen years; and mentioned still others who pre- ferred renting in Collin county to living on their own land else- where. Whose is the fault ? ' "I don't know," said a tenant farmer — an intelligent, fine looking physical specimen, about twenty- secen years old, "I work all the time. It is all I can do to clothe and feed my five babies. Land is $150 per acre. As for owning a home — well, there's no chance for me." In either case, be it where the landlord is harsh in his attitude toward the tenant, or where the tenant has lost all hope and drifts about from place to place, the effects on the home and the school in the country are equally disastrous. At best, a high per cent of farm tenancy in- duces an apathy in the public spirit of the community that retards enterprise in all directions. 116 Bulletin of the University of Texas While the writer, in the brief time he had to make this investi- gation, lieard many bitter charges preferred against the landlords as a class, on closer inquiry he was led to believe that in the main they were unfounded and that the landlord in most cases has a sympathetic attitude toward the tenant. Some of them go so far as to encourage their tenants to vote for local taxes for school and road maintenance. Only a few instances could be found where landlords had actually intimidated tenants that were disposed to vote for a local school tax. One removed a tenant, another raised the rent, and several made vigorous personal canvasses of their respective communities in opposition to proposed school taxes. Still another took advantage of the fact that most of the tenants in the district where his real estate was located happened to move out last year ; and before the new ones who moved in to take their places had been in residence long enough to become qualified voters in this district, he had an election called, and voted off the local school tax. In most of the black land counties the economic and social aspects of farm tenancy constitute an almost insurmountable bar- rier in the way of a thorough and complete system of public edu- cation. A study of the distribution of tenancy throughout the United States will show that those sections having the most fertile soil, with the exception of a few fruit growing districts where the farms are very small, have the highest percentage of tenants. The more fertile the soil the higher the price of the land, and the higher the price the harder the land is to get. For this reason the percentage of tenancy in the black land belt of Texas is unusually high. A further study will show that farm tenancy is increasing throughout the country. In 1880, 25 per cent of all the farms in the United States were operated by tenants; in 1890, 28 per cent; in 1900, 35 per cent; in 1910, 37 per cent. At this rate in thirty years half of the farms will be in the hands of tenants. But already conditions in Collin county are worse than this, for 69 per cent of the farmers do not own the fields they cultivate. Large Districts Versus Small Districts. In the administration of public education Collin county is divided into 134 administrative units, 17 of which are independent A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 117 districts and 117 are common school districts. The 17 independ- ent school districts include most of the little towns of the county, and have an average area of ten and one-half square miles each. Most of these schools are well attended, well taught, and have very good equipment. The average area of the 117 common school districts is only five and one-half square miles. This does not compare very favorably with the excellent system of schools in Harris county, where, it will be remembered, the average area of the common school dis- tricts is 32.5 square miles. The seventeen independent school dis- tricts of the towns and villages have property valued at $331,676, or an average of $69.26 for each child enumerated in them; while the 117 common school districts have $91,212 worth of school prop- erty, or $10.82 per child within the free school age. Thus it can be seen that the country school children are at a decided disad- vantage in point of physical equipment for school purposes as com- pared with the children in the towns and villages. The scholastic enumeration for Collin county for the school year 1913-14 gives 13,033 children entitled to free school privi- leges. Of these 4789 are in the independent districts, and 8244 in the common school districts. The children in the common school districts are taught by 173 teachers, with an average of 48 pupils each ; while those of the independent districts are taught by 124 teachers, with an average of 38 pupils each. This, taken togetlier with the additional fact that the rural teacher has, as a rule, from four to six grades, while the village or town teacher rarely has over two grades, and usually but one, leads us to see very readily that the country teachers are at a tremendous dis- advantage as compared with those who labor in the town and • village schools of the independent districts. The generally over- crowded condition of the country school combined with the facts that the teachers are often young, inexperienced, lacking in knowl- edge of child life, and withal quite limited in academic training, accounts to a very great degree for the inefficiency of the average country school as compared with the more carefully graded, better equipped, better taught, and less crowded school of the town or city. Under such circumstances the country child does not have a fair chance. For this reason many of the families that the 118 Bulletin of the University of Texas country can least afford to lose are constantly moving to town to educate their children. To say nothing of the character of the service rendered, the small country school, when it is poorly attended, is one of the most expensive institutions in our entire educational system. It costs the public school funds just as much to maintain school one day when half the children enrolled are present as it does when all of them attend. The smaller the average daily attendance the greater will be the per capita cost per day for those who do attend: e. g., if a teacher with thirty pupils is paid three dollars per day and all of them are present, their instruction costs the state only ten cents each per day ; while if half, or fifteen, of them attend, the cost of instruction still remains three dollars, or twenty cents per day for each one in actual attendance. As shown by the teachers' sworn reports for the school year 1913-14, the most costly schools in Collin county when figured on the basis of actual daily attendance were among the small one-teacher places. At the following one-teacher schools, where the attendance was \ery irreg- ular, the cost to the school funds for each day attended by each pupil was as follows: Enloe, 29 cents; Higgins, 21 cents; Thomp- son, 31 cents; Bois d'arc, 19 cents; Old Celina, 30 cents; Burger, 20. cents; Sister Grove, 20 cents. In the town of McKinney the cost is approximately 11 cents per day. This difference in cost is clue to the difference in attendance. As a rule the smaller the school the poorer the attendance. Poor attendance means extrav- agance and 'Waste of school funds. But the waste in finance, which is a quantitative thing that can be measured and expressed numer- ically, is possibly not near so great as the qualitative, or immeas- urable waste of brain power that must inevitably befall the child in the poorly attended, poorly taught, small school. The first arguments offered by the opponents to consolidating these small, inefficient rural schools is: "When you enlarge the district the distance to school will be so great the children cannot attend." At first thought it looks as though this might be true; but as a matter of actual practice it is not. The representatives who made this investigation noted nothing more critically and carefully than the advisability of consolidating small rural schools. They were gratified to learn that in every county examined there was not a single instance in which, after a school had been en- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 119 larged and improved, the percentage of actual attendance had not increased correspondingly. Provide and equip a plant that really merits the name of a school, and the children will attend, regard- less of the distance. This was found to be true even among the worst of the muddy roads of Collin county. Note the following case of the Dixon consolidated school. Dixon Consolidated School. It will be recalled that the average area of the common school districts in the eastern half of the county, where the roads are worst, is 3.2 square miles each. In the extreme northeastern por- tion of the county it was seen fit to consolidate five of these smaller districts so as to make two larger ones. The new Dixon Consoli- dated School was formed by the union of Old Dixon with Hope- well and two-thirds of Eichards, each of which maintained a one- teacher school. The total scholastic enrollment for the three schools last year was 135 pupils, whose total average attendance was 57, or 45.6 per cent, for each day school was taught; while the ncAv Dixon Consolidated School this year had an enrollment of 99 pupils with an average attendance of 65, or 65.6 per cent, each day that school was taught. Or in other words, the 99 chil- dren in the new consolidated district of about nine square miles, with two strong teachers, the man principal, a graduate of Burleson College and the lady assistant, trained at the Denton Normal, have attended school more than the entire 125 did while distributed among the three small schools last year. Last year three teachers were employed in the three schools at a cost of $175 per month; this year two teachers are employed at a salary of $140 per month. Last year the cost per capita on actual daily attendance was 15.8 cents per day; this year it has been 11.3 cents. Economically this is an improvement of 28.5 per cent over what it was last year; while in point of general efficiency and improvement in the character of service rendered, it marks the beginning of a new era in the life of the community. It might be well to add that the present county superintendent of Collin county, when he was a young man just beginning in the profes- sion, taught for seven years in the locality where this consolidation has Ijeen made. He knows all the people and the local conditions 120 Bulletin of the University of Texas in that part of the county thoroughly. This might well be inter- preted as a strong argument for a longer tenure in office for the county superintendent than is customary in Texas; for if this man had been in office long enough to become acquainted with the entire county as well as he is with the Dixon community, he could effect more consolidations and render greater service to the public schools than would be possible on short acquaintance. Dixon Consoliuated School. This building was constructed from the material of three old one-room :^choolhouses, and the proceeds of the sale of the three old building sites sup- plemented by $300 from the community. Thirty-three of the thirty-six fann- ers in this community own their homes. Lucas School. As another concrete demonstration that adequate equipment and competent teachers will swell the attendance, even in tlic face of distance and bad roads, the case of Lucas school may be cited. This school is located in the open country, nine miles from Mc- Kinney. In this instance no c'onsolidation has been formed, but three years ago the school patron? and the W. 0. W. lodge, which lias 133 members at this place, decided to co-operate with each other in the construction of a new school building and a lodge hall. ^4 Study of Eurul Schools in Texas 121 Eighteen Imndred dollars was raised by private subscription for this purpose. Two comfortable classrooms were fitted up and furnished with eighty new single desks, and the lodge hall, 45x55 feet, overhead was to be used as the community's social gathering place. Two capable lady teachers were secured from the North Texas State Normal School at Denton, and have taught there con- tinuously since. Note the progress that has been made. At the time the two new classrooms were completed and fur- nished everyone thought they would afford room for the school for all time to come. In a new country where people are constantly Lucas School Building and Lodge Hall. moving in, it is not uncommon to see a community outgrow its school facilities in a very short time; but in a mature country like Collin county, it is unusual. The excellent work of the new school soon began to advertise itself. Pupils from outside the district were attracted to it, and before the end of the second year the entire seating capacity was taken. This year a third teacher was emploj^ed. A new room will be added before the next session of school begins, and one of -the neighboring districts will, at its own request, most likely be annexed to it. During the spring of 1914, the Department of Extension of the 123 Bulletin of the University of Texas University of Texas conducted a "Better Country Life Campaign" in Collin county. Tliree meetings were held at Lucas, the results of which are partly responsible for the progress reported in the following recent communication from the county superintendent : "Prospects are looking good for another year. Lucas is pre- paring for three teachers, which will enable it to do high school work next year. Parker and Stintson, just south and east of Lucas, have consolidated and are building a modern three-room house in which three teachers will be employed. The Winningkoff school district, just north of Lucas, will have a meeting one night this week to discuss the proposition of raising the school taxes and of employing a third teacher in the school. Each of these two schools is situated two and one-half miles from Lucas, and quite a number of the patrons of each district were at the meeting at Lucas conducted under the direction of the Department of Exten- sion; and their progiam has had a great deal to do with these improvements.'" While Collin county cannot, at present, possibly carry consoli- dation to such an extent as Harris county, with its excellent coun- try roads, has done, yet consolidation, on a smaller scale, is its one hope of improvement. A rural school district of thirty or forty square miles would be too large because of the bad highways; but districts of from three to six square miles, as many of them are, are entirely too small. Conclusions and Recommendations. 1. After having looked over the field carefully, the writer be- lieves that an area of twelve to twenty square miles would be the most practical unit to adopt for rural school purposes in this county at present. 2. Collin county has a number of village and town schools that are well equipped and well taught, but the country schools are very inferior and below the average for the state. 3. Bad roads and farm tenancy are the two greatest hindrances in the way of good country schools. 4. The smallest common school districts found in the entire course of tlii:^ ^■'^lr\ev are in Collin countv. cl study of Rural Schools in Texas 13.' Collin County Roads after a Continuous Fviun. Supt. W. E. Foster Visiting Schools in Collin L ouuty When the Roads are Dry. 124 Bulletin of the University of Texas 5. The poorest attended and most expensive schools are among the smaller rnral districts. 6. Some clerical help should be provided for the office of the county superintendent. He needs to spend his entire time in the field among the schools, but as it is, more than half of his time is consumed in the office. There is no econom)' in having a $1500 man do the work of a $40 office clerk. 7. There should be a map of the entire county showing the exact boundaries of each school district. As it is, there is much irregularity in the rendition of property for school taxes. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 125 IX. THE RURAL SCHOOLS OP I^ACOGDOCHES COUNTY. Location^ Tocography, Transportation, Communication. Nacogdoches county is situated in the eastern part of the state, just one county removed from the Louisiana line. The surface is broken with hills and valleys, and is well timbered with pine and hardwood trees. The soil is gray sand, red clay, and red sandy loam, and yields well in cotton, corn, tobacco, peanuts, and almost all kinds of fruit and vegetables. There is a large acreage still available for new settlers, and unimproved cut-over land can be had at from three to ten dollars per acre, and improved land at from ten to fifty dollars per acre. Agriculture and lumbering are the chief industries of the people. The present population of 27,406 persons is an increase of more than 10 per cent over what it was ten years ago. In area this county has 962 square miles. It is well supplied with railroads and other means of transportation and communica- tion. It has five railroads, 175 miles of sand-clay roads, 680 rural telephones, and rural mail service for more than nine thousand of its people. Forty-nine daily papers are delivered to the farmers on the four rural routes that go out from Nacogdoches. During the past ten 3^ears the rural telephones and the rural mail service have been factors of inestimable value in stimulating the rural public mind and in awakening new civic and educational ideals among the country people. Their value increased just so much more by the fact that travel in the county is generally difficult, because many of the roads are sandy and unlevel, and the annual rainfall of forty-eight inches keeps them in bad condition in the low places much of the time. County and Community Fairs. Possibly no one educational agency has had so great an influence in a material way as the Nacogdoches County Fair, which was inaugurated four years ago. Until this time the amount of pure blooded stock in the county was alarmingly small. The first year of the fair there were one hog, six cattle, and a few chickens entered that were either registered or subject to registration. In 126 Bulletin of the University of Texas 1913, four years later, there were on exhibition 165 registered hogs; 75 registered Jersey cattle; 75 blooded colts, 15 of which were entitled to registration; and a great number of fine blooded chickens, turkeys, and ducks. In four years' time the number of registered hogs in the county has increased from six to more than four hundred. The dairy and poultry industries have been bene- fited proportionately. A local editor said : '"The exhibition of farm products locally grown is leading to better agriculture on the part of those who attend the fairs. Nothing has ever stimulated our people into the idea of better farming half so much as the county fair." Mx. D. L. Campbell of Appleby was awarded the first prizes for the best ear of corn, the largest ear of corn, and the best ten ears of corn in Texas at the National Corn Show at Dallas, February, 1914. He grew this corn from a native variety that had been improved by Mr. Jim Greer, the county farm demonstrator. The 1913 prize acre of corn in the county produced 92.5 bushels. It is in one of the best agricultural sections in the county, where a local school district fair was held the year before. The Nacogdoches County Fair has a capitalization of $3500, with 92 stockholders and 120 acres of ground leased for twenty years. County Superintendent W. B. Hargis is secretary of the fair, and fully appreciates its value as an instrument of education for the people with whom he labors. This year each school dis- tinct in the county will have a booth in the fair ground, where numerous specimens of school work with pictures of champion debaters, spellers, athletes, and athletic teams, together with speci- mens of its best farm products, such as corn, cotton, ribbon cane, pumpkins, fruits, and vegetables, will be on exhibition. Several prizes will be offered, and the competition among the schools to secure them will be interesting and profitable to the cause of edu- cation tliroughout the county. The value of the school district fair as a means of getting people together and awakening a hearty educational spirit is well exem- plified in the case of the Martinsville school, fifteen miles east of Nacogdoches. Until the past three years the old one-room school building, constructed forty-one years ago, was still in use. Mr. G. F. Fuller, a citizen of this community, invited the county board of education to hold an educational rally at Martinsville, July 1, .4 Study of Rural Schools in Texas 127 B:^ 5.b H CL, ^ ti o rD ^^ S ^, tr P (/J 03 H "^ ;— ; „. fD ^ Cu ^ P ^ o -"^ " C/3 J^ sr ?= s y rt) rl- a s ^ S ■ ^ 2 2 ^ ^. o % ?;■ o" g: ^ "* ^^ S « — O CO n- S ° < dp S "^ s op r: n =2 2 ^ "^ S? (t) (t> ~ OS fD s 128 Bulletin of the University of Texas 1911, to see if a consolidation could be effected. The consolida- tion movement failed, bnt the stimulus bore fruit. The meeting was a combined educational rally and communit}- fair, where many of the local farm products were on exhibition in the old school- house, and the blessing of getting together to make common cause of the matter of education came to the people. It was from tliis date that the new life of the community began. In three years Martinsville has grown from a one-teacher school to a three-teacher school with a new modern building and three well furnished class- rooms. Through the enterprise of the county farm demonstrator, the boys' corn club work has been very successful, and many prizes have been awarded at the county fair. One of the state experi- mental farms is located one mile from the county site, and though many people do not fully understand its purpose and meaning, more farmers are coming to the director, Mr. McNess, for advice than was true three years ago. In speaking of the agricultural exhibits and the demonstration work in the county, a Nacogdoches pastor said: "They have done much to wake our people up, and the psycho- logical effects are noticeable both in the church and in the school. The greatest trouble heretofore with our people has been their thorough-going contentment and general disposition to resent all innovations. They are now beginning to cliange their attitude, and I attribute a great deal of it to the new era of material prog- ress that has recently dawned upon our county." , County and community fairs are invatuahle factors in public education. Social Recreation and Athletic Sports. There is scarcely a good country school in the county that has not at some time introduced the box supper as a means of social entertainment. In some communities three or four are given each school term. Often they are accompanied by short programs of local talent, and, as a rule, they are community affairs participated in by all the people, young and old. They are an excellent anti- dote for the grumness of old age, and furnish excellent amusement for the young people and children. In addition they also con- stitute a valuable source of revenue for the various activities of A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 129 the school, such as a library, athletic paraphernalia, expense money for athletic meets, or even funds for painting the schoolhouse or purchasing school equipment. One school in this county seated the schoolhouse from the proceeds of a single box supper. A favorite method is for each young lady to contribute a cake, which is sold to the highest bidder. In some instances the for- tunate purchaser is given the right to eat supper with the young lady whose cake he purchases, and in other localities the rules permit him to accompany her home. Strange to say, the most liberal donors or purchasers are often those who oppose bitterly the levying of local school taxes. In one case a penurious old bachelor, who had just returned to the courting ring after an absence of nearly twenty years, became interested in a cake pre- pared by a good-looking lady teacher. He was the successful bid- der, and procured it for the substantial sum of $80. While he had the privilege of accompanying the young lady home, a dis- tance of one hundred yards, it may be truthfully said that 80 cents per step made the stroll rather expensive. Though time has proved that he invested in a losing venture, yet this amount of his horded funds, which could not have been obtained by any other method, was secured for a most worthy purpose. While box suppers are a legitimate means of raising school rev- enue, their greatest value lies in the fact that they afford an oppor- tunity for an expression of the community's social life. Any effort which properly stimulates the social instincts and promotes good feeling cannot fail to help the school, the church, and the com- munity. This is well illustrated by what a picnic and school rally did at Lone Pine two years ago. The schoolhouse had gone to rack, and there had been no school for three years. The doors were down, the windows were out, the flue gone, and a man could crawl through the top of the roof without touching a shingle. In the entire history of the place there had never been a school term of more than three months. Now there is a new building and a six months' term of school. This is primarily the result of a good social warming up, and the inspiration that comes from numbers and associations, for the people of this community are spending more time with each other than ever before. In speak- ing of this school one of the patrons said: ''When you start something it attracts other people. Folks be- 130 Bulletin of the University of Texas Garrison — The Champion Basketball Team of the County, 1013. >SwJ< teiis '''m ^I^Br mik s M ri I M'^ll^^^lli 1 H '1 IB I 1 1 ■ i^rt^^ft.v. ~»,';!^ 1 Hi Gariison vs. Chireno, 1913. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 13! gin to move in when a new schoolhouse goes up in east Texas. There are fifteen more school children at Lone Pine now than, there were one year ago." Interscholastic contests during the past three years have con- tributed very materially in arousing school spirit and in getting people and schools better acquainted with each other. It has been the policy of the present administration to put a tennis court or a basketball court on every school ground in the county. At pres- ent there are twelve schools that have adequate equipment and organized teams for these games. Three years ago there was not a basketball team in the county. But the contests among the schools are not limited to athletics entirely. Contests in debating, declamation, and spelling are equally as popular. The Interscholastic Debating and Declama- tion League, as outlined and directed by the Department of Exten- sion of the University of Texas, has a strong organization in this count}^, and last year a twelve-year-old boy of Nacogdoches won the first place in the district, which qualified him to enter the- state contest at Austin, where he distinguished himself. Finances and Physical Features of the Common Schools. There are sixty-eight common school districts in the county with an average area of approximately thirteen square miles each, and a total of 4666 white children within the free school age. Three consolidations have been made during the past year, and two others are now pending. All but five of the common school districts have voted a school tax, and $11,851.70 was raised for school pur- poses by local taxation last year. The county superintendent said: "The greatest trouble I have had is to get the people to under- stand the principle and working of the local tax. When they once come to understand it they are all right, but, as a rule, it takes a year's persistent campaigning in a community to carry a school tax election. During my tenure in office, five of the wealthiest land holders in the county have offered to go down into their pockets and contribute to school purposes rather than vote a tax. They are not essentially opposed to a local tax, but they were suspicious- of it and preferred not to get it started." 132 Bulletin of the University of Texas Gushing Higli School Basketball Team, 1913. County Interscholastic Athletic Meet, 1913 — 1000 People Present. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 133 In developing a country where new people are moving in and where so much unimproved farming land is found as in Nacog- doches count}^, a strong rural school is a very material factor in helping to enhance local real estate values. Realizing this, the wealthier sawmill owners, who have large areas of cut-over land now open for settlement, unanimously encourage the voting of local school taxes. "Yes," said one of them, "I am in favor of it. Let the people vote a school tax and maintain a good school. I shall gladly pay my part, for it will double the value of my land." The sawmill companies are the heaviest taxpayers in the county, and not a single instance was found where a local school tax was paid grudg- ingly or with complaint. The following is a typical example: The Brewer's Chapel district has a fifty-cent tax which yields $583.58. The Frost-Johnson Lumber Company pays $448.10 of this and the Angelina Lumber Company $78.87. In speaking of it one of the patrons said: "As long as the lumber companies contribute $500, we people who live here and get the benefits will pay the rest." In Nacogdoches county, as in many other counties in Texas, there has been much irregularity in assessing and collecting school taxes because of a lack of definite knowledge as to the exact loca- tion of property and the boundary lines of the several school dis- tricts. For this reason it has been impossible to find all the prop- erty liable to taxation for school purposes, and the school finances have suffered accordingly. Last year Superintendent Hargis pre- pared lists of the property taxpayers in each school district, to- gether with the assessment of each taxpayer, and sent them to the local trustees for correction. The results were astonishing. Many new names were added to the accredited list of school taxpayers, and considerable property previously missed by oversight or false rendition was found. One 1700-acre tract of land, one 600-acre tract, one 700-acre tract, and many smaller holdings that had been escaping local school taxes were discovered. By checking up the taxable property of the county in this way, the school funds of many districts were very substantially increased. These are some typical examples of the gains made over the previous year: District No. 33 increased from $184.77 to $267.01; District No. 134 Bulletin of the University of Texas 35, from $207.10 to $241.73; District No. 48, from $127.60 to $583.58. This irregularity in the assessing and collecting of local school taxes is as true for dozens of other counties in Texas as it has been for Nacogdoches county. As a rule, the cause lies in a con- dition rather than in the faithlessness of any public official. The remedy is within the power of the commissioners' court. An excel- lent investment that the commissioners' courts of Texas can make for the public school children of their respective counties is to provide a map that accurately shows the houndaries of every puhlic school district in the county. Until this is done, inaccurate district boundaries and indefinite knowledge as to the exact location of property will continue to •encourage laxness and irregularity in the rendition, assessment, and collecting of local school taxes. Indeed, there will continue to be no inconsiderable amount of property in some counties included in no school district at all. And so long as the office of county superintendent continues to be a political one, there will continue to be at least a few men in it so intimidated and overcome by political cowardice that they will never have the courage to do what Superintendent Hargis has done toward collecting the taxes justly due the public schools in Nacogdoches county. The past four year's have been a remarkable era in the construc- tion of new school buildings, and the contagion has spread through- out the county. Twenty-three motley old structures have been replaced by new and better houses during this time. Pine lumber is the universal material, and is quite often supplied to school boards by local sawniills at the actual cost of production. Prox- imity to the source of lumber supply makes it possible to erect a common frame building cheaper in east Texas than in any other part of the state. Most of the new schoolhouses of the county show a few small defects that might have been avoided had all the plans and speci- fications been furnished and the contracts let by the county board and the county superintendent. Most of them have unsightly, useless cupolas on them, and in many instances the windows are not grouped so as to give the best lighting. The average school trustee seldom shares in the responsibility of constructing a school 'i)uilding more than once in a lifetime, and is thoroughly inexperi- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 135 enced in such an undertaking. If experience is worth anything, Nacogdoches county would have a better class of rural school build- ings today had all those built during the past four or five years been designed by the same man or some specific body of men. Recommendations. 1. Superintendent E. F. Davis of the Nacogdoches High School is president of the county board of education. His influence as an educator is felt throughout the county. Every county board in the state should have at least one professionally trained school man on it. 2. A majority of the rural teachers are ladies. In some of the one-teacher schools they are walking as far as two and one-half miles to procure board and accommodations. No teacher can do the best work under such conditions. Trustees should give such matters their attention, and provide a remedy where possible. 3. North Church school was annexed to Nacogdoches in 1913. Formerly it had three teachers. At present it is a ward school of Nacogdoches, and employs two teachers. One teacher at $50 per month has been eliminated by a transportation wagon for $30 per month that conveys all the children above the seventh grade, eleven in number, to Nacogdoches, where they get nine months of school instead of seven. School boards should keep posted as to the success of this public transportation wagon, and adopt the plan wherever efficiency and economy among the schools can be gained by it. 4. There are twenty-nine negro schools in the county. The greatest waste of the public school funds is on these negro schools. They are poorly housed, poorly taught, and poorly attended; and withal, are made to conform to an educational system planned entirely for the whites. Chireno Public School in Nacogdoches County. In the extreme eastern part of the county at the little village of Chireno is one of the best organized small schools in Nacog- doches county. The state funds apportioned to this school are supplemented by a fifty-cent special school tax levied on the $210,400 of taxable property within the district. Upon this sup- 136 Bulletin of the University of Texas plementary tax the physical life of the school is largely dependent^ and the hard fight that was originally necessary to carry the tax constitutes one of the most interesting pieces of school history connected with the community. To begin with, most of the farms are operated by tenants, there being fifteen land owners and forty-one farm tenants in the dis- trict. Four of the wealthiest and most influential men of the community own large farms, and in the little town have small retail stores, which are essentially commissaries for supplying their tenants and hired laborers. They all stood for the school tax and a better school. The strange thing and the matter of most in- terest is, the bitterest opponents of the tax were among the farm tenants who would pay the least of it and get the greatest benefits- from it. One poor fellow who had seven children within the free school age and whose only property listed for taxation was one Jersey cow that had not had the taxes paid on her for three years^ and is noAv on the delinquent list, got alarmingly exercised over the proposed school tax and cast his influence against it over the protest of his landlord, who was willing and anxious to pay it. However, most of those who were terrified at the idea of increasing the taxes for the benefit of the school are now well pleased with its working. The trouble was, they did not understand it. At present the school has four well equipped classrooms and an auditorium seated with 250 opera chairs. A new piano has been recently purchased, and is now being paid for by the children on the installment plan. On the school grounds there are tennis and basketball courts, race tracks, a baseball diamond, and a small agricultural garden. Four teachers are employed, and 169 pupils- were enrolled during the scholastic year, 1912-13. Most of the success of this excellent little school is due to the policy and ability of the school board to find and employ none but the most capable teachers. Many well meaning school boards fail in this respect because they have not the ability to judge and select the kind of executives, instructors, and organizers best qualified and adopted to meet the needs of their respective communities. The present school board consists of three men — a farmer, a book- keeper, and a doctor. The farmer and the bookkeeper are two of the most influential and best informed men in the district, and have been in office four years and three years, respectively. The A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 137 physician is an ex-teacher, a graduate of the University of Texas, and has served on the school board for one year only. During the past year he delivered a course of twenty lectures to the high school on physiology, hygiene, and sanitation, which were highly instruc- tive and much appreciated by the students. At present four teachers are employed. The principal is a man thirty years old. He was a student at the University of Texas for three years, and has been in his present position for four years. He has recently been re-elected for another year at a salary of Chireno Public School. $1200 with the privilege of going away during the summer to attend school. The first assistant was graduated from the Hunts- ville Normal, and later attended the University of Texas two years. The third assistant was educated at the Huntsville Normal, and the fourth assistant at the Indiana Training School for Teachers. In addition to their academic preparation, these teachers have strong personalities, and are full of the kind of energy that means so much for success in the schoolroom. They possibly constitute the strongest small school faculty in the county. 138 Bulletin of the University of Texas Much of the success of this school is due to the skill of the teachers in organizing and directing the social, literary, and ath- letic activities of the community. By these means more students, especially the older ones, have been held in school than would have otherwise been possible. There is a musical organization and a young people's dramatic club of seventeen members, which do much to enliven and make the social interests of the community Chireno Boys' Basketball Team. worth while. The principal of the school is director of the inter- scholastic debating and declamation league of the county, and Chireno will be represented by two debaters in the next county contest held at Nacogdoches. All the athletic teams are strong, and last year the Chireno school won second place in the county interscholastic track meet. A University Home and School League, recently organized, has rendered several interesting programs. Many of the village schools of east Texas would do well to emulate the example set by Chireno. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 139 X. THE EURAL SCHOOLS OF FISHEE COUNTY. ECONOMIC AND INDUSTRIAL SITUATION. Fisher county, organized in 1886, lies in central west Texas, bordering the 100th meridian. The area of the county is 836 square miles; the annual rainfall is 35 inches. Excepting a few small mountains in the northwestern and the southwestern por- tions of the county the land is level and rolling. As a rule, the soil is red and sandy. Alluvial soils are found in the land drained by the Double Mountain Eiver and by the Clear Fork of the Brazos. Agriculture and stock raising are the principal occupations. The total value of farm products in 1910 was $1,052,295, this amount being approximately one-fifth of the value of farm prod- ucts in Bell county for the same year. Cotton constitutes about, one-half the value of the agricultural products. Eeceipts from the sale of animals reach about one-fourth of a million dollars per year. Land constitutes nearly four-fifths of the county's resources, having an average value of $18.50 per acre. The number of farms showed the remarkable increase from 519 in 1900 to 1839 in 1910. They have an average size of 243.6 acres, of which the improved parts average 75.4 acres. Even though the lands are cheap, only 43.4 per cent of the farms are operated by owners, while 56.1 per cent of them are operated by tenants. In 1914 the farm houses of both landlords and tenants gave evidences of neglect, such con- ditions being due in part to several successive years of drouth. Several railways supply the needs of the people in the southern, eastern, and northern parts of the county; but there are no rail- ways in the central and western parts. Dirt roads through the county are not the best; on the other hand, owing to the peculiar soil formation, few of the roads are bad. The county has made no investment in permanent roads except in a few places in the shinnery sand, where graded roads have been constructed. Bridges are in excellent condition. There is no reason why the conditions of the roads should be a barrier either to industrial or educational progress. Friendly rivalry exists among several thriving towns which are generally awake to commercial advantages. For exam- ple, the town of Eoby has regular trade days, which are attended 140 Bulletin of the University of Texas by the country people for miles around. The merchants co-operate in this movement, giving prizes to farmers. On one of these days, the writer counted more than 200 country vehicles. The arrange- ment of trade daj^s not only has a commercial value, but it also promotes social intercourse and co-operation between the town and the country. The enthusiasm of the Farmers' Union membership is worthy of mention. The union has eight separate local organizations with an active membership of 250. The county organization maintains a warehouse and cottonseed house at Rotan. The union employs a cotton grader who is sent to short term schools and institutes at the expense of the union. This policy has evidently proved to be a wise investment. Members of the union own a co-operative store at Rotan, which, in the opinion of many of the farmers, has prevented excessive prices to consumers. There is a lack of industrial organization among the boys and girls upon the farm. This is due largely to the fact that no one has assumed leadership. The employment of a county farm dem- onstrator to initiate industrial organizations through the schools would l)e a profi.talle investment. SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS CONDITIONS. According to the census of 1910, Fisher county had 2415 fam- ilies. About 2000 of these families reside in the country. There are very few foreigners and only one negro listed in the rural population. The number of rural telephones is about 500. Wliile they con- stitute a network extending over practically every community, they are more numerous in the northern part of the county where the population is densest. Approximately 60 per cent of the homes receive the benefits of the rural free mail delivery. A large per cent of the schoolhouses, especially those constructed within the last few years by bond issues, are provided with audi- toriums. Many community meetings are held in the schoolhouses. The social activities are generally connected with church and school affairs. In many cases the teachers have assumed leadership, giv- ing entertainments of various kinds in connection with the school. While more has been done in this respect than is usually done in A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 141 rural communities, there still needs to be a broader social utiliza- tion of the school plant under the leadership of the teachers. Parent-teachers' meetings, boys' debating clubs, girls' cooking and sewing clubs, and Home and School League should be organized in every community where auditoriums are available. Many of the schools, encouraged by the county superintendent, have promoted social center work by friendly contests in debating, declamation, spelling, and athletics. One contest brought a school to appreciate the best there was within its pupils, although noth- ing was won except a spelling match. The idea of this small school competing for honors against a certain big school in con- tests of debating, declamation, athletics, and spelling was at first considered a Joke. But the winning of a spelling match made the entire school enthusiastic, causing the pupils to enter the county contest with a belief that they were not inferior to the pupils of other schools. Fifteen schools have basketball teams with equipment, and many have baseball teams. The teachers have learned that the surplus energy of the pupils must somewhere find an outlet. If this energy does not find an outlet in play directed by the teacher, it will find expression in fighting, idleness, and insubordination. These contests eradicate many difficulties from the schoolroom, furnishing at the same time an opportunity for developing the social instincts by means of public games and contests among the different schools. The county superintendent and the principals of the town schools in the county have given encouragement and assistance to the development of clean athletics among the country schools. In only one or two instances did the board of trustees offer serious objection to the direction of such activities. The teachers of Fisher county are commended for the personal interest tvhich they are taking in athletics, and for the friendly contests developed among the different schools. The condition of the country churches in Fisher county is not unlike tliat generally found in other counties. Intensive church work is limited principally to two denominations, each of which maintains twenty-two organized churches. One of these denomi- nations owns nine church buildings, the other twelve. Of the forty-four churches maintained by these two denominations, not a single rural church employs a pastor for full time. The pastors 143 Bulletin of the University of Texas generally have from two to five churches each, and only four live- in the communities where they preach. As a rule, each country church contributes from $75 to $150 per year to the pastor's salary. Very few pastors are enabled to participate in the social and indus- trial activities of their respective churches. The leading preachers are waking up to the need of fewer and stronger churches. One pastor stated that he had been preaching for nineteen years, both in Texas and in New Mexico, and that he had found it necessary during this time to organize only three new churches. His posi- tion was that the present organizations should be enlarged and perfected before new organizations are attempted. These facts indicate fundamental weaknesses which must be cor- rected if the country churches are to become thrifty and useful. There should he more resident pastors whose time should he avail- ahle for community hetterment during the entire week. Salaries should he at least large enough to enable the pastors to hecome business men to the extent of meeting promptly their living ex- penses. This can best he accomplished by strengthening present organizations and by discouraging the establishment of too many churches. It is also evident that the church should assume a larger worh in directing the activities of the young people. EDUCATIONAL STATUS AND TENDENCIES. Course of Study. The course of study recommended by the State Department of Education is followed by the teachers of the public schools of Fisher county. This statement, however, applies to individual subjects rather than to the scope of subject matter. More than a dozen country schools were visited, and the teaching observed was conducted in the main according to the most approved pedagogical methods. But not a single school offered any laboratory training in agriculture, domestic economy, or manual training. Little effort had been made to adjust the course of study to local environ- ment. In one community the proposal of securing state aid for establishing a department of agriculture had received considerable discussion, but the discussion did not accomplish anything definite. The fundamental weakness of the country schools of Fisher county is that they do not offer industrial courses. As a matter of fact. A Study of Biiral Schools in Texas 143 One mson ^hi fosllm kik (oulr^ $c]iocU of ^x$hr Gml^ arc Hoi dcsirMa^ 93.D ?(ir Ccn} 60 ?ar &nh of Ik kackvs drniM of\h Imkrs Hi nof wsiHons in 1913* (4. ckngn milm in W'li. IN A TOTAL OF SIXTY-TWO TEACHERS: 58 Changed positions at beginning of last session. 4 Taught two years at same place. None taught three years at same place. 43 Were new teachers in the county. Contrast this with the schools of Germany where teachers seldom change more than once in a life-time. Does any other public or private business permit such a waste by the constant changing of employees? If positions are to be made more attractive to the best teachers and if the school is to attain its highest efficiency, there must be a LONGER TENURE OF OFFICE FOR THE TEACHERS 144 Bulletin of the University of Texas any such instruction worthy of commendation will continue to be impracticable until centralized consolidated high schools, discussed elsewhere, are provided. Teachers. According to the official report of the county superintendent for the year 1912-13, there were employed 66 teachers, 26 males and 40 females. Twenty-four were holders of second grade, 37 of first grade, and 5 of permanent certificates. The matter of employing teachers has been a difficult one, there being an oversupply of second grade and an undersupply of first grade teachers. Conse- quently it has been necessary to import teachers with higher grade certificates. Only in this way has the county superintendent been able to enforce the provisions of the Rural High School Law, which forbids the holders of second grade certificates from teaching high school subjects. For the same year, the average salary per teacher was $350.95 per year, or $66.21 per month. Such a salary is entirely too small to attract and retain efficient teachers. By far the most serious question relating to teachers is that of tenure of office. An investigation for the year 1913-14 showed that only four teachers out of the total of sixty-two were teaching the same schools they taught the previous year, that not a single teacher had held the same position for a period of three years, and that forty-three teachers had never before taught in the county. In this respect conditions are not so favorable as in the average county. Such rotation of office is indeed a slipshop business method, and the application of such methods would bankrupt any private business concern which is required to meet competition. Contrast this with the town schools where the tenure of office is much longer, or with the schools of New York City, where teach- ers are selected for indefinite terms, or with the schools of Ger- many, where a teacher seldom changes his position more than once in a lifetime. Contrast this practice also with the vision of Herbert Quick : "This schoolhouse (the future school) will not stand alone on a bleak hillside, but will be the center of a little hamlet of build- ings. There will be a teacher's house with a few acres of land attached; and no one but a skilled farmer will have any chance to get the position — and the farm. The farm will have barns and A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 145 .-lieds to suit its size. The teacher will live on it with his family, and I hope will be engaged during good behavior. It will be a life job for the right person." Need of Rural High Schools. The representative, in company with the county superintendent, visited about fifteen country schools. Excepting two village schools which employed three teachers each, none of the schools had more than two teachers. The records of the county show that twenty-five of the country schools are one-teacher schools, fifteen are two-teacher schools, two are three-teacher schools, and one is a four-teacher school. This includes all the schools of the entire county except those at Roby and Rotan. The teachers of the schools visited were as capable and conscien- tious as are found in similar schools elsewhere, performing as efficient service as could be expected under the conditions. The two-teacher schools generally maintained either eight or nine grades, the principal having charge of four grades, beginning with the fourth or fifth. Excepting the three-teacher and the four- teacher schools, not a single school had a high school department separate from the grammar grades and employing teachers whose work was confined to the high school grades. In the one-teacher schools, the character of the high school instruction was even more deplorable. Let it be remembered that these schools are the only Sichools accessible to the average country boy or girl in Fisher county. The fact is plainly evident beyond contradiction that the lack of thorough high school opportunities is a most serious defect and that the conditions now imposed upon these schools make gopd high school instruction impracticable and impossible. In the western and southwestern parts of the county, there was a general sentiment that country high schools should be estab- lished. One member of the county board, an enthusiastic advo- cate of public education, had proposed the location of a high school in a prosperous community about twelve miles west of Eoby, the county seat. It was proposed that the children of high school advancement from all the adjoining districts be sent to this school. The idea met Avith the hearty approval of the people in the com- 146 Bulletin of the University of Texas mimity where the high school was proposed to be located ; but the scheme was opposed by the leading citizens in the adjoining com- nmnities. It was the same old story of the difficulty in finding a satisfactory location for a central school of this kind. Legal ob- stacles on account of outstanding bonds in some of the districts would have prevented a consolidation of the districts concerned, while community pride and local jealousies would have made im- possible the establishment of a high school by means of the transfer authority, now vested in the county board of education. Failure of this effort to obtain a country high school was due to the system in vogue rather than to the proper appreciation of high school advantages. A Practical Plan for Providing High Schools. No public spirited citizen believes in retaining a system which has proved a failure — a system which within itself defeats the pur- poses for which it was created. One purpose of the county school system is to provide adequate high school instiniction. The uni- versal failure to do this, not only in Fisher county but in all Texas, is strong evidence that the general plan should be changed so that local community prejudices cannot operate to deprive the children of high school advantages. It is the opinion of Mr. Tim- mons, formerly county superintendent of Fisher county, that thor- ough high schools cannot obtain in the two-teacher and the three- teacher schools as they now exist. There must be larger districts before real tenth and eleventh grade work can be offered. x\l- though the school districts in Fisher county are larger than those in the average county, having an average area of 18.8 square miles, it is evident that every community cannot maintain a high school. On the other hand, it will require the co- operation of from three to six districts to maintain one efficient high school. Eoad conditions in Fisher county would permit high school pupils to travel five to seven miles where transportation, either public or private, is provided. This means the inauguration of a system of consolidation for high school purposes. The high school student within six miles of a standard high school under the proposed system would be infinitely more fortunate than the high school student residing within a A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 147 stone's throw of a school with such meager opportunities as are now offered. Under the proposed plan, the schools as they now exist could be maintained for the pupils of the primary and inter- mediate grades. Experience shows that the grouping of districts for high school purposes and the location of the high schools should be delegated to some centralized authority, such as the county board of education, and that all primary, intermediate, and high schools maintained in each consolidated district should be under the man- agement of a local board of trustees. Since many of the districts in Fisher county have issued schoolhouse bonds, there are legal obstacles that do not obtain in other counties. Legislation that is needed in such cases is discussed under the general topic of con- solidation. Summarizing, the present schools of Fisher county should ie grouped by the county hoard of education for high schools and each consolidated district should be directed by a local board of trustees. At least two factors should govern in the location of a country high school: First, the community should possess strong physical resources and a local recognition as a community center; second, the location should be such that high school pupils in the surround- ing districts could be accommodated. For example, the Dowell school in common school district No. 6 of Fisher county possesses a strong community sentiment developed through its rich farms, stores, churches, lodges, and local farmers' union organization. Again, it has a reasonably strong school, and at distances of three miles and four miles, respectively, are two other schools which could contribute at least fifteen scholastics to the high school at Dowell. Dowell is only one of several desirable locations for real country high schools. Schoolhouses. The needs of a community, or a group of communities, are gen- erally expressed in the character of its public buildings. Selfish- ness often predominates to the extent that the churches and the schoolhouses do not bear a creditable comparison with the dwell- ings, stores, and other private enterprises in the same community. In this respect Fisher county is a notable exception so far as the schoolhouses are concerned. The value of the school property per country child in this county is $31.19. This is a remarkable show- 148 BuJletin of the University of Texas ing when we consider that the value of school propert}- per child in the state, including towns, is only $30, while the value of school property per child in the country schools of the state is les? than $15. There are forty-two country districts, of which twenty-six have issued bonds for the erection of schoolhouses. This total bonded indebtedness aggregates $50,800, the average cost of each new schoolhouse, including equipment, being $1954. Five of these are one-room school buildings, nineteen are two-room school buildings, one a three-room building, and one a four-room building. Prac- tically all that have more than one room are provided with ac- ^/^ -.^.. „ ^^IHHHIiii^HHIIHHIHIHI^^B The Above is a Type of the Twenty-six ^Modern Schoolhouses in Fisher County. cordion doors, which permit their use of the combined floor space for community meetings. Except in two or three cases, the school- houses have been erected according to modern plans, it being a requirement of the county superintendent that all plans conform to approved principles with respect to light and ventilation. Ex- County Superintendent W. E. Timmon^, whose work is responsible for a large part of this progress and who made a special study of the scientific construction of small sclioolhouses, insisted upon the A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 149 AN UNPARALLELD RECORD FOR GOOD COUNTRY SCHOOLS Four Years' Progress In Fisher County Of forty-two districts, twenty-six have issued bonds for the erection of schoolhouses. Twenty-four of these schoolhouses have been built according to approved plans furnished by the University of Texas. Nineteen of these buildings have approved systems of heating, lighting, and ventilation. Every school is seated with modern desks. Every district levies a local tax; no district less than twenty cents, many fifty cents, and the average thirty-three cents. Not a single special tax or bond tax has been defeated in the last six years, and never in the history of the county has a community voted off a local school tax of any nature. 150 Bulletin of the University of Texas adoption of plans which he believes are peculiarly applicable to the local section. These provide that the house shall face the south, that the doors, halls, and cloakrooms shall all be on the south, and that the light shall be admitted from the north through a window area equal to one-fifth the floor space. In justification of this general plan, the following reasons are assigned : (1) The windows being on the side opposite the sun, there is no need for window shades, which are expensive and which require constant adjustment; (2) ventilation coming from the north is more uni- form; (3) the evil effects of the prevailing southwest winds are reduced to a minimum. ^ An equally significant fact about these schoolhouses is the con- sideration given to heating and ventilation. Nineteen of the twenty-six schoolhouses mentioned have modern systems— fresh air intakes, foul air outlets, and stoves that provide a uniform tem- perature over the entire rooms. Several of these schools were visited on the coldest winter days, and there was an absence of the stupefying, germ-laden atmosphere usually found in a closed room of the country school. It was also observed that the rooms of the modern buildings were provided with excellent blackboards, a reasonably good supply of maps, and comfortable furniture. Every schoolhouse in the county is seated with modern desks, about one-fourth being single desks and about three-fourths being double desks. Local Taxes. The development and growth of sentiment for local taxes has likewise been marvelous. Including taxes necessary to provide for the interest and sinking funds of bonds, more money is collected from local taxes than is apportioned to the schools from state and county sources. Every district in the county levies a local tax for maintenance purposes. No district levies less than twenty cents on the one hundred dollars valuation of property. Including the bond taxes, many districts levy the maximum of fifty cents, while the average tax for all purposes is thirty-three cents. In no instance has a maintenance or bond tax been defeated within the past six years, and never in the history of the county has a com- munity voted off a school tax of any nature. The people of Fisher A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 151 county are commended for the unparalleled progress which has been made in the voting of local taxes and in the erection of hygienic schoolhov^es. Consequences of Effective Supervision. How may we account for this sentiment with respect to school- houses and local taxes? While the people are generally progres- sive, they are not unlike the people in many other sections. The explanation is, they have had the advantage of active leadership in the office of county superintendent. Before the office was cre- ated, Judge Barker, the ex-officio county superintendent, a man of positive convictions, was an uncompromising friend of the public schools. In the school work he was succeeded in August, 1908, by Superintendent W. R. Timmons, who served till November, 1912. The administration of Superintendent Timmons was characterized by vigorous campaigns for progressive school measures, among which were the lev3dng of local taxes and the construction of good schoolhouses. He did not hesitate to espouse actively the cause which he advocated, never making a compromise with the enemies of progressive school improvement. Superintendent Timmons was succeeded by Superintendent W. C. Martin, who is at present county superintendent, and who is also an advocate of progressive school measures. The following is an extract from a letter re- cently written by Superintendent Martin: "District No. 33 and District No. 36 have each voted $3000 bonds unanimously. District No. 18 raised the local maintenance tax from 20 cents to 40 cents by a vote of 12 to 1. District No. 20 voted unanimously to raise the local tax from 20 cents to 40 cents. District No. 33 raised the local tax from 20 cents to 30 cents unanimously. District No. 28 will vote on a bond issue of $1600 on July 11th, and I feel sure it will carry." Observations throughout the state show that the location of the office of county superintendent is often not properly consid- ered. Some regard it as a kind of appendix, to be located in a remote corner of the courthouse. In other instances the county superintendent is given an office with some other county officer. Such action is an unfailing indication of either stupidity or preju- dice. No office in the courthouse is visited bv a larger number 152 BuUetUn of the Universitij of Texas The Old Ganxox School, Fisher Cou.xty. TiiK Xi:\v Caxxox School, Fisuek L'uixtv. A Study of Bural Schools in Texas 153 of ladies nor is any office more important than that of county superintendent. In this respect the commissioners' court of Fisher county has been considerate. The county superintendent has been assigned one of the best offices in the courthouse, and it is equipped with all necessary furniture. furthermore, the commissioners' court has shown liberality m giving the county superintendent necessary supplies. School taxes, bond taxes, trustees' election blanks, stamps, stationer^', and record books are furnished. In addition, the county purchases uniform report cards to be used by the teachers of the county. County Teachers' Institutes. The annual county teachers' institute of this county is held the last week in October, just before the majority of the country schools open. Last year all teachers who had entered into con- tracts were present, and no teacher asked to be relieved of any work assigned. The county institute is conducted according to the recommendations of the State Department of Education. De- serving particular mention is the fact that the program of the county institute provided for a discussion of local school problems by the institute and the county board of education. The holding of local institutes throughout the county would doubtless bring the people and the local trustees into closer relation with the county superintendent, thereby assisting in the solution of many school problems. Libraries. Throughout the county there is a general lack of libraries. Fewer than one-third of the schools have libraries of any kind. However, the county superintendent during the past year has given encouragement to all attempts to improve this unfortunate con- dition. Several schools have recently procured the Texas Farm and Ranch libraries. County Permanent School Fund. Many counties in Texas have violated the law in squandering the funds donated to them by the state as a permanent county school fund. In this respect the schools in Fisher county have been guarded diligently, the permanent school fund of the county 154 BuUetUn of the University of Texas now being $89,350. It is invested in interest-bearing notes and bonds which add each year from $1.50 to $2.00 per pupil to the available school fund. Summary for Fisher County. The employment of a county farm demonstrator to initiate in- dustrial organizations through the schools would be a profitable investment. There needs to he a broader social utilization of the school plant under the leadership of the teachers. The teachers are commended, for the personal interest which they are taking in athletics^ and for the friendly contests developed among the different schools. The churches need more resident pastors whose time should be available for community betterment during the entire week. Sal- aries should be at least large enough to enable the pastors to become business men to the extent of meeting promptly their living ex- penses. This can be best accomplished by strengthening present organizations and by discouraging the establishment of too many new churches. It is also evident that the church should assume a larger work in directing the activities of the young people. The fundamental weakness of the country schools is that they do not offer industrial courses. Salaries are entirely too small to employ and retain efficient teachers. The fact is plainly evident beyond contradiction that the lack of thorough high school opportunities is a most serious defect and that the conditions now imposed upon these schools make good high school instruction impracticable and impossible. The people of Fisher county are commended for the unparal- leled progress which has been made in the voting of local taxes and in the erection of hygienic schoolhouses. The holding of local institutes throughout the county would doubtless bring the people and the local trustees into closer rela- tion with the county superintendent, thereby assisting in the solu- tion of many school problems. If the country schools are to perform the character of service which prepares the pupils for life, there must be country high schools, industrial courses, higher salaries for teachers, longer school terms, better libraries, and adequate laboratory facilities. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 155 XI. BETTERMENT OF EUEAL LIFE ABOUT THE TU- LETA EUEAL HIGH SCHOOL, BEE COUNTY, TEXAS. (The following contributed article is the story of how a one- teacher school, such as that iisiiall}^ found in Texas, was trans- formed into a social and intellectual center of the community. It indicates the latent possibilities that exist in hundreds of other communities. Ko public school position in our state is given a wider field of usefulness than that of the country school.) Organization of the TuUta Rural High School. With the aim of preparing boys and girls for a useful and happy life in the open country, the people of District No. 25, Bee county, taxed and bonded themselves to the limit of the law, donated twenty acres of their best land, gave their services in erecting a four-room school building designed by an enterprising young physician in their midst, and secured state aid with which to establish the departments of agriculture, manual training, and domestic economy. During the four years since the organization, the board of trustees has succeeded in securing teachers trained in such insti- tutions as Columbia University, Smith College, the University of Texas, the University of Tennessee, and the University of Wis- consin. These teachers, imbued with love for their profession, gave their time, strength, and money in tireless efforts to work out the ideal of the school. The result at Tuleta has proved beyond question that a united rural community in co-operation with school officers and with trained teachers can do what it wills, while it has also proved that the teacher is logically the leader of the rural community. A willingness to serve the community as the best way of helping the individual has been characteristic of the Tuleta people. Their principal, Miss Stoltzfns, whose home was in Tuleta, paid her own expenses on several trips to Austin in interest of state aid, while she accepted the available small salary in order to establish the school. She found that it was not convenient for the farmers to board the teachers. In order to provide her lady assistants with a quiet room in which to study, to make a home for the girls who 156 BuUetlin of the University of Texas wif^hed to board under the chaperonage of teachers, to furnish a suitable music room, and to offer -a place where the social life of the young people could be directed, she built the "Bungalow" at her own expense on her lot near the school building. Miss Stoltz- fiis has been principal from the organization of the school. The trustees have recognized her wide experience in school rriatters, and have elected as assistants those whom she has recommended. In this way the faculty has been composed of earnest and capable young teachers who were glad to have experience in rural work uvider Miss Stoltzfus' direction. She realized, indeed, that these ajpbitious beginners could not be satisfied long with their meager salary, but she felt it better to sacrifice tenure of office in order to secure well trained teachers, if for a short time only. The Tuleta school has been a *center of social and intellectual activities that have attracted good citizens and have been the means of keeping the boys and girls on the farm. N'eighboring districts have transferred a large per cent of their pupils to this school, and patrons are realizing the value of united effort in securing for their children a high school training at home. Adjustment of Course of Study to Local Needs. The course of study at Tuleta was based upon tliat outlined by the State Department of Education, modified to suit local condi- tions. The work of each grade was related to home and farm through sojue form of handwork in the laborator}', in the field, or at home. The primary room was furnished with a work table, which was constantly surrounded by relays of little people who, between les- sons, were l)usv with nature materials, paper, cardboard, paste, color, clay, or wood — solving problems related to their work. Ma- terials for this work and for nature study were found at home and in the vicinity of the school plant. There were the animals, plants, and elnys. The village merchant never thought of burn- ing his store boxes until the primary teacher had taken an inven- tory of them. The waste basket of the generous country editor was the source of colored paper supplies, and his storeroom proved a veritable mine of cover paper and cardboard at reasonable prices. Everybody was glad to help. The teacher's daily preparation for A Study of Piural Schools in Texas 15^ this work produced results that were educative to the people be- cause they awakened interest, originality, and appreciation of beauty and of things about them. A visitor at one of the semi- monthly mothers' meetings caught the spirit when, after seeing the primary exhibit, she said : "This makes the children love to come to school." The end of the school term found these pri- mary classes further advanced than pupils of the same grades in schools that did not have a course in handwork. (More work for the teacher to do? Yes, but there is no successful effort that Manual Training Class in Session after School Hours Wlien Tuleta was a Two-teacher School. does not require labor, and when intelligence is behind such labor it ceases to be drudgery.) The boys of the intermediate and high school grades were taught manual training in a separate building known as the "school shop." The hand tools for the first woodworking classes were donated by a local merchant. The work benches were made by the boys and - a patron carpenter. The boys found the woodwork hour a wel- come means of using up their extra energy, which needed just the safety valve that hammer and saw, chisel and plane could furnish 158 Bulhtlin of the University of Texas about 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Materials for beginning classes in this work consisted of store boxes and scraps of wood found about the pupils' homes. The more advanced classes paid for their material, which the teacher furnished at cost. The use and care of farm tools were taught by making useful and attractive things for the home and school. Among the ar- ticles were : racks, boxes, benches, tables, and science apparatus for the schoolroom. Pupils also made the yard gate, the cold Little Girls' Sewins? Class at Tiileta. frames, the flow^er press, and the screens for the state. But it was with special pride that they pointed to their mechanical draw- ings and handsome furniture, such as bookcases, upholstered stools and Eoman chairs, writing desks, porch swings, piano benches, library tables, musis racks, umbrella racks, hall chairs^ and tab- ourets. Many of these pieces were made to be given away, but not one piece was for sale except the screen that was made for tlic purpose of paying for some of the shop material. "I may A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 159 put a pen around this porch swing and charge fifty cents a look tomorrow," said one of the boys who was helping to put up the exhibit for the close of the school; "and believe me," he continued, "I wouldn't take fifty dollars for it. The truth is, I wouldn't sell it." Another boy spoke up with : "The cost of the material in this desk and stool is a dollar and fifty cents, but twenty-five dollars won't buy it." Here he affectionately rubbed the lid of his desk with the palm of his hand to bring out the polish. Ap- preciation for construction, for beauty, for things that are "true and square" were some of the most valuable lessons these boys learned. What better opportunity for character building, or for interesting the children in doing useful things about home? The general science laboratory and the school kitchen occupied two rooms on the ground floor of the main building in which were three sinks wdth running water. A wind pump carried water from a deep well into a large covered tank near the building. From this tank the water was piped to the drinking fountain. The school kitchen with its complete but inexpensive equipment for cooking and sewing became the most popular classroom in the school. All the girls in school in the fifth grade and above were given daily lessons in some phase of domestic economy as presented in UnivGrsity Bulletin No. 326. Lessons in the textile class were verified on the school loom. The lessons in fitting, cutting, and making garments were supplemented by studies in tests for identifying fabrics, in the history and manufacture of fabrics, in the suitability of material to use, in the relation of color to use and becomingness, in the cost and sanitary care of materials, and in other topics that provided suggestions and direc- tions for good housekeeping at Tuleta. These classes made attract- ive and instructive contributons to the school exhibit, such as collection of textile, color scales, designs and drawings, holders, tea towels, dust caps, curtains, bed linens, baskets, sewing aprons, sweaters, underclothes, dresses, and rag rugs. The motliers fre- quently contributed their knitting, quilting, or crocheting to the school exhibits. The classes in domestic science studied briefly the historic de- velopment of the home ; the location, the sanitary surroundings, and other essentials of a good, comfortable, convenient and beau- tiful home. Each girl brought to class the plan of her own home 160 BiiUetlin of the University of Texas or of some room in lier home. This plan was discussed with ref- erence to saving steps, ventilation, and furnishings. Wlien con- ditions suggested a modification of the original plan, the student worked out a new plan, including the changes agreed upon with the cost estimated on most economic hases. The girls learned that the functions of the room determined its location in the house, its decoration, and its furnishings. Another series of ever popular lessons were the classification, the nutritive value, the digestibility, and the cooking of foods. Balanced meals, the serving of meals, invalid cookery, foods for children, and home nursing were val- uable parts of this course of study. Stress was placed on home canning and preserving home-grown fruits and vegetables. But the climax of the girls' work in cooking was reached when in the school kitchen they prepared a dinner for their mothers and teachers. The table linen used upon this occasion was bought with the proceeds of the sewing-class Christmas bazaar. The at- tractive decorations, the dainty hand-painted place cards, the well cooked and beautifully served meal were all the work of the girls. An itemized account of expenses and cost per plate was a part of this day's lesson. Credit was given cooking and sewing classes for duplicating Avork at home. Materials for all lessons in domes- tic science and art were furnished by the patrons, and each stu- dent brought her part of the material on the day it was needed. This was another example of co-operation of home and school. The school farm of sixteen acres was cultivated by the farmers and their boys. Last year the boys rented two-acre plots and demonstrated the lessons learned in their agriculture classes. In spite of a severe drouth they raised a fine crop of kafiir corn and cowpeas. The tinistees are hoping to have in the near future suffi- cient funds to erect farm buildings and to procure proper equip- ment for farm work. This will give the principal a permanent home and additional income. It will also give the farmers and pupils a permanent rotation demonstration plot. This department has a good beginning at an agricultural library and laboratory. The agriculture classes have received most of their training out- side of books. They gave special attention to botany, biology, soils, agronomy, animal husbandry, and dairying. They have studied live stock on the neighboring fanns and ranches, visited the experiment station, tested milk and seed for the farmers. I A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 161. studied sewage disposal, good roads, farm buildings, plans for beautifying home grounds, system of farm accounts, etc. Social and Intellectual Activities. This class organized the farm life club, which met monthly in' the school auditorium and which has since become the Home and School League under the auspices of the State University. Its programs were .given by the pupils and patrons. The following was the February program: Music by Boys' Glee Club. 1. Dairying a Profitable Business in Bee Count}' — Earl Young, 2. Tj-pes and Breeds of Dairy Stock Adapted to this Section — Archar Page. 3. Balanced Eations for a Bee County Dairy Cow — Oliver Hamilton. 4. The Business Side of Dairying — Richard Xelson. 5. Care of the Dair}^ Cow — Foster Porter. 6. How to Cook Milk and Milk Products— Esther Nelson. There was an exhibit of cottage cheese at this meeting. The most attractive dish consisted of molded cheese, seasoned, and gar- nished with crisp lettuce leaves, strips of sweet red pepper, and boiled salad dressing. A member of the cooking class told how to make cottage cheese, and why this dish might serve as the main part of a balanced evening meal on the farm. The athletic association was a feature of Tuleta school life in which pupils, teachers, and parents were interested. The teachers helped to organize good team games, basketball, tennis, and base- ball for boys and for girls. At intermission each group of pupils played its favorite game on its particular part of the school ground. The boys cleared the trees and brush from a neighboring lot and made a "first class baseball diamond." Here they won and lost some very exciting games in the presence of interested audiences. School yells and songs, occasioned by these games, awakened a school spirit that with added years will develop into community pride and co-operation. The school literary society held its semi-monthly meetings on Tuesday afternoons in the schoolhouse. The public debates al- ways attracted large and enthusiastic audiences. Among the sub- 162 Bulhtlin of the University of Texas jects for discussion were: Woman Suffrage, Panama Canal Toll, Initiative and Eeferendum, Compulsory Education, and Monroe Doctrine. It was upon these occasions that the paper, "The Chap- arral," was read, the last edition of which was published in mag- azine form, with cover design and illustrations from the school art class. School and home activities afforded the teacher of English ample material for spelling and composition lessons; they furnished in- numerable models for the drawing class; they gave practical prob- View of Tuleta School Work Shop. — Children preparing for May Day. lems for matliematics, and many correlations with history and geography. A school library of some three hundred books was supplemented by the principal's books and magazines, by a fine collection of farm bulletins in labelled files made by the boys, and by a half dozen agricultural papers. These books and papers were read at school, at home, and as supplements to textbooks. The library was open each Saturday afternoon during vacation. Use of Local Talent Outside the School. Among the most successful members of the corn club were pupils from the Tuleta school, and their agricultural exhibit has always carried off the prize at the county fair. These exhibits were of social and economic value to the school, to this community, and A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 163 io the county. They awakened a friendly rivah-y that meant school improvement throughout the county and beyond the county bound- aries. The Tuleta prizes for the best marching and for the best exhibits were used to buy new books for the library and to help pay for the accordion doors to the auditorium. The students, "the post graduates," and the teachers organized ihe "Dramatic Club." These workers gave the people many even- ings of entertainment for the benefit of the school. They bought the lights for the auditorium and paid for the lumber for the seats. Buf it was during the rainy weather that the farmers took a day •off to make these seats free of charge under the direction of a com- petent carpenter. The auditorium now seats comfortably four hundred people. In the "Bungalow" were held the weekly meetings of the "Glee Club." Here everybody, old and young, interested in learning music \A'as always welcome. The glee club concerts were popular events in the community life, and helped to cultivate a taste for the best music. It was in the bungalow that the music teacher taught his classes and gave his recitals; there on special occasions -everybody entertained his friends, and there the Victrola concerts were given. Another feature of community welfare was the annual course of lectures given at the schoolhouse by experts from the State Uni- versity and the State Departments of Education and Agriculture, demonstrators from the Agricultural and Mechanical College, and by other friends of education. No school can carry on its work successfully without the co- operation of the mothers of the pupils. The Tuleta mothers' meet- ing was organized the Saturday before the opening of school, and has continued to meet in the school kitchen at regular intervals. A valuable and popular feature of each program was a lesson on some chosen phase of housekeeping by the teacher of domestic economy. When the lesson included the cooking of some food, the product was used for "refreshments." A cup of tea with home- made wafers proved a wonderful medium in clearing up the little misunderstandings between the teacher and "John" or "Mary." The ladies taxed themselves to furnish the necessary supplies for these lessons. An important part of special meetings was the exhibit of home products, such as canned or preserved home grown 164 Bulletlin of the University of Texas fruits or vegetables, home-made bread and cakes, or rag rugs. Sujch exhibits have resulted in an exchange of recipes and an un- usuall}' successful social hour. The discussion included sewing problems, better home laundries, saving steps in the home, school lunches, and substitutes for meat and for Irish potatoes. Home industries for the production of objects of commercial ar.d artistic value are being organized under the direction of the teacher of domestic art. Woven, braided, or crocheted rugs, china- 1 ' til 1 ^1 i i i ■ s?M m i_^ ■1. I -f i 5* ' f ^ 3» M- T M: ^ :m W' /"• ^ " k. ^-'irf '^ib^ ' A Farmers' Meeting at Tuleta. — Exhibition of Farm Products. berry and salt beads, bonnets, and quilts are some of the products of the Tuleta homes. To train the mind and hand to create some- thing beautiful is often a valuable and needed form of play and of earning power which drive away discontent and emptiness in life. Another get-together feature of the community was the Civic League, organized and managed by the Tuleta women to beautify the village park which their efforts had made possible, and to keep the citizens reminded of their duties on annual Clean- A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 165 up Day. Everybody attended the league ice cream socials, box suppers, picnics, and other money-making entertainments. Special days throughout the year were celebrated at the school- house or at the Bungalow. The Christmas program and the Hal- lowe'en and Valentine parties have become annual events, to be enjoyed by many people. Tuleta school was opened with a successful farmers' institute, and this important gathering has held all of its subsequent meet- ings at the schoolhouse. The teacher has been an officer of this club, while the! pupils have taken active part in the meetings. The program committee of this body of farmers has brought to tbc community some of the great agricultural experts. It was this club that encouraged the raising of better com seed for the com- munity, the keeping of more dairy cows, and the production of better poultry and poultry products. This group of farmers was among the first in the state to study the subject of rural credits and the Eaiffeisen banking system. Closing Exercises of the School. The annual closing exercises of the Tuleta school have always repxesented the year's work in an all-day program. The following was the program for May 5, 1914: Invocation. School chorus. Welcome address. Primary exercises which consisted of songs, stories, nature talks, and drills. A Home-made Fireless Cooker — How I Made it and How to Use it. Eradication of Household Pests. The Country Boy's Creed. Story of Gettysburg. Choosing of Textiles. How to Make a Cup of Good Tea. Home Canning. Meat — Its Nutritive Value, and How to Cook it. Hog Eaising in Bee County. Farm Sewage Disposal. 166 BuUetlin of the University of Texas Good Eoads. Life History of a Bean. Greek Architecture. Color — Its Use and Expression. The Farm-Home Living Eoom. Goat Eaising in Texas. Gasoline Power on the Farm. Our Big Canal. Farm Accounts. Care of the Teeth. Eed Letter Days of the School Year. Address by Hon. F. M. Bralley. Each pupil's address was illustrated by suitable objects or by charts which he made for the purpose. These charts were both educative and decorative. The pupils furnished the vocal and in- strumental music for the occasion. While the above program was being presented, a group of girls on the stage was making a dress, and another group was making baskets. The speaker on "Meat" cooked for her audience on her oil stove on the stage a delicious steak from a cheap cut. The "Good Cup of Tea" was made by the speaker, who served this tea with dainty sandwiches. The delicious cereal cooked in the home-made fireless cooker was tasted and pronounced perfect, as was the can of pork and beans which the little housekeeper who spoke on "Home Canning" passed to her audience. In fact, the stage with its group of young workers presented more the appearance of a working bee than it did the conventional commencement program. A unique feature of this program was an auction at which were sold the dress and the baskets made on the stage, the doll house made and furnished by the fifth and sixth grades, and the screen made in the school shop. The horse show on the grounds attracted much attention and promised better stock for the commamity. A barbecue, free to all, proved a grand socializing feature at the noon hour, while at night a delightful rural operetta, "Alvin Gray," furnished much pleasure to the crowd and helped to pay for needed school improvements. At the close of these exercises opportunities were given for vol- unteer speeches from visitors and from home folks, who responded with good will and much encouragement to the teachers and pupils. A Study of Rural Schools in Texas 167 All then joined in singing "America," after which the students grouped themselves, gave hearty "rahs" for everybody, and sang their school song as only loyal students can sing. One stanza ran : "We are the folks of Tuleto school, The Bee County Eural High; You'll find us in the country In the state of the Lone Star. To see a better spot on earth You'll surely travel far. For Tuleta's in the lead, they say. She's there to stay ! Hur-r-ray ! The final program of the school's literary society, on the Satur- day niglit before commencement, was as follows : Piano duet. Chorus — Brahm's "Lullaby." A Story— William Tell. Composition — Our Inheritance from the Greeks. Declamation — Compulsory Education. Chorus — "The Drowsy Bee." Recitation — "Why Women Need the Suffrage." Debate — Eesolved, that the Monroe Doctrine Should be Aban- doned. Reading of School Magazine — "The Chaparral." Song — By High School Boys. Drama — "Little Women" (Miss Alcott). LIBRARY OF CONGRESS M 019 760 048 2 D LIBRftRY OF CONGRESS 001 976 004 2 ^ 00 ^89^ Coo-^ HoUinger Corp. ¥ 1 r> r